Pac-Man never really changes his ways, but Championship Edition 2 proves that a three-and-a-half decade old videogame star can still pull a crowd. This is a smart set of takes on what may genuinely be a timeless mechanical formula.

The same array of activities that has made past games in the series such a joy to play returns once more, but the effect isn't quite as impressive because the central story hasn't been given enough time to properly develop.

Iratus: Lord of the Dead tweaks the team tactics formula of Darkest Dungeon but cuts down on the management aspect to focus firmly on moving quickly from combat to combat. It lacks the narrative flair or emotional punch of its inspiration but makes up for it with satisfying tactical options and a balanced challenge level.

If Forsaken breathed new life into Destiny 2 which had been flagging during its first year, then Shadowkeep feels like a step down from that. [I’m currently at 915 power level]

Some technical issues still exist and delving deep into mysterious sites doesn't mesh well with the overall gameplay. However, Age of Wonders: Planetfall - Revelations does present an engaging campaign. Likewise, its unique mechanics such as the Heritor secret tech and Forgotten faction's use of Entropy weapons are worth a try.

On the surface, Atomicrops is a retro-inspired, top-down 16-bit shooter. However, even early stages start to reveal a much deeper experience, filled with love interests, guns, and unrelenting enemies. Perks can become permanent down the road, but the path to getting there is fulfilling and enough to keep you returning after each defeat for more crop production and bullet fire.

Europa Universalis IV: Emperor is a massive expansion that has a number of flaws that can be annoying to experience. Still, it's guaranteed to keep your next playthroughs refreshing thanks to tweaks and overhauls to existing systems, as well as new mechanics for the Holy Roman Empire and Catholics. New mission trees for dozens of nations like Bohemia and Austria will also change how you approach your campaigns.

Total War: Three Kingdoms - Fates Divided is one of the game's weakest DLCs when it comes to narrative events, but it does present a great scenario for a Cao Cao or Yuan Shao campaign. For the most part, though, you're looking at a highly impressive free update. It truly makes the game more refreshing and engaging, thereby also completely overshadowing what the DLC provides.

As long as you don't plan on making a repeat playthrough, Erica is a great experience. Only upon replay do issues like limited narrative variation, non-essential quicktime events, and the illusion of choice make an appearance. Despite that, this is a fantastic use of the FMV genre that more people deserve to experience.

Wavetale is only four hours long and can be too one-note for its own good, but a captivating world and resonant story make it worth playing all the same.

Remnant 2 is signing out with a final DLC that is well worth the small price tag, and typically true to form.

Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2 is grand in scale and scope, a testament to everything that's possible in the grimdark Warhammer 40K universe. Although a few issues still exist, it's still a stellar offering and one that Tindalos can continue to expand.

Steel Assault is a great, action-packed experience that is very easy to recommend to fans of old-school retro arcade games. However, offering only one hour of playtime at that price point may put off newcomers to the genre.

Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider has a lot of heart and very strong level design, but its weakened by a low level of challenge.

Rebel Galaxy Outlaw successfully builds upon the first game by introducing an entirely new combat system. This change is a major step forward, and it shows that the developers are putting their resources towards bettering this series. Overall, the rich RPG mechanics mixed with classic space flight make for some deep and engaging gameplay.

Persona 4 Arena Ultimax on PC is a port with some questionable drawbacks, like the lack of a lobby mode and no rollback netcode on launch. But it's still the same great fighting game beloved by many.

Dying Light 2 still retains many of the key factors that made the original enjoyable and exhilarating. Unfortunately, it's also bogged down by technical issues, janky mechanics, and a restrictive save system that prevents you from readily seeing outcomes.

Humankind is ambitious in size, scale, and scope, allowing you to try out multiple combinations of cultures as you progress through various eras. However, it's also hampered by limitations in certain mechanics and systems that don't mesh well with the overall gameplay.

A brilliant and satisfying conclusion to The Walking Dead: The Final Season, and to the franchise as a whole. Take Us Back explores evocative themes while having emotionally impactful moments as you experience the end of Clementine's journey.

Dodgeball Academia has all the potential to be an epic, superpowered sports RPG. The dodgeball battles are lively and fun, but the story never reaches the fantastical heights it alludes to at the beginning of the game. It's enjoyable but not one for the record books.

Solasta: Crown of the Magister has a few notable problems, and it starts to stumble the closer you get to the finish line. However, it still manages to offer an engaging and highly customizable experience that will keep you entertained for many hours.

Blasphemous might be derivative, but it's one of the best, if not the best Metroid-like I've played this year. Not only is it downright gorgeous, but the gameplay is uniformly excellent and hunting for its many secrets make it a puzzle well worth exploring.

As far as games in the series go, One Piece Odyssey is one of the best if you don't mind the narrative issues. I wasn't expecting it, but it ticks all the boxes that a solid JRPG needs.

Back 4 Blood is another great multiplayer zombie game, but some serious balance issues force it to stumble out of the gate.

Darksiders Genesis may be a new look for the series, but it doesn't sacrifice the glorious chaos fans have come to love. Gorgeous visuals, weighty combat, and a surprising amount of replayability make Darksiders Genesis something everyone can enjoy.

Stirring, artistic, and emotionally resonant, Genesis Noir is quite a unique experience. The puzzles can be tedious, but the game makes up for it with gorgeous art direction and sterling creativity.

There is a noticeable emphasis on the narrative. Although Shadow of the Tomb Raider modifies what we've grown accustomed to within the franchise, the change of pace is welcomed. You'll find pockets of open-world to explore, with tons of side-quests and interactions with NPCs. Don't expect guns-a-blazin', but do expect getting more than you bargained for from this Tomb Raider experience.

A Fold Apart is short and pricey, for sure, but the few hours it offers are an arresting blend of devious puzzling and heart-rending storytelling. Infinitely more so if you've been in a long-distance relationship.

Olija is a unique, intriguing adventure that brings players to a strange land. It isn't long but its length is enough. The visuals and atmosphere are first-rate, as are the combat and level design. All of that makes it an easy game to recommend.

Phenomenal controls and addictive gameplay are the crux of Aeon Drive. This is a very good speedrunning game that I wish did more to draw in a certain crowd, but it'll please the devoted all the same.

Persona 5 Tactica seamlessly blends the SRPG genre with Persona 5. With combat mechanics that elevate the game and a story that ramps up to be enrapturing and heart-wrenching, Persona 5 Tactica is easily my favorite Persona spin-off, and I hope Atlus makes more SRPGs with this style of gameplay.

Captivating and highly entertaining despite how limited and aggravating the combat can be, Ghostwire: Tokyo is stays appealing thanks to its strong open world and dedication to spirit exorcism.

With a strong narrative and exceptional investigation mechanics, Sherlock Holmes Chapter One manages to one-up its predecessors. Sadly, it also doesn't reach its full potential, though we can hope that future titles are more in-depth.

Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord comes back with improvements to everything we liked about the previous games and some new systems as well. However, it's not a perfectly polished game, so you'll have to navigate a few edges on your path to restore/destroy the Empire.

Featuring a wonderful cast of characters with their own unique perks and capabilities, as well as the extremely fun Breach Mode, XCOM: Chimera Squad is a brilliant spinoff that provides a refreshing take on a classic franchise's long-standing formula.

World of Horror gets its art direction and gameplay mechanics right. But it comes with a learning curve, and can eventually feel stale after doing the same mysteries multiple times.

For all the problems I've outlined, I haven't enjoyed an AGS adventure this much in quite some time. The end might not satisfy, but the journey is a hell of a ride.

The Resident Evil 3 remake manages to take the core elements from the original and make them new again. The RE Engine also provides the right platform for extremely detailed facial animations and environments. Although this remake might run a rather linear course, don't let that deter you from jumping into this punchy, solid, action title that's extremely well-paced from start to finish. This is yet another example of Capcom taking an already great property and somehow making something new out of it while still respecting its own source material.

This is far from a bad game, but it’s too generic to stick out for its presentation and too annoying to let its gameplay do the talking. If you just want a short beat ’em up to play with a friend, then there’s some amusement to be had here. But this is far from the best beat ’em up you can buy on PC.

While Battlestar Galactica: Deadlock has its share of minor problems, they don’t significantly detract from some engaging tactical encounters within a universe of familiar sights, sounds, and Cylons.

Star Wars Outlaws does a lot of things right and a lot of things wrong, resulting in a gorgeously realized galaxy that feels simultaneously dated and innovative.

Relic reinvent Dawn of War once again, retaining many RTS staples and borrowing a little from their MOBA genre-cousins. It’s not a flawless mix, and the multiplayer contents are a bit lean; but distinctive factions, a solid campaign, and largely compatible mechanics give Dawn of War 3 a strong base of operations.

Hard West 2 has some refreshing ideas to consider, such as perks based on your deck of cards, and consistently refreshing action points by way of kills. Unfortunately, its over-reliance on a puzzle-like, kill-all-in-one-round concept also leads to a repetitive and tedious romp as time wears on.

Warriors Orochi 4 performed admirably well in our benchmark test, and it seems Koei Tecmo have learned from lessons past. The magic system and seamless transitions between attacks make for a freshly dynamic gameplay experience. However, as with all Warriors games, it can get repetitive after a while. The visuals and effects are beautiful, but a gigantic cast, lousy officer AI pathing, and tacked on mechanics make it bloated at the same time.

While Sovereign Syndicate offered a rich world with colorful characters and an enticing story, I left it feeling like there was more to see. Luckily, its unique Tarot system and detailed dialogue kept me intrigued.

Deck Nine have finished off Life is Strange in sterling fashion. Saying farewell to Arcadia Bay with Before the Storm is sad, but the best farewells usually are.

A mid-season episode which keeps the narrative wheels turning, steps up the action in places, and (at last) gives the Ironrath Forresters some brief moments of triumph.

Backpack Hero offers some neat adventures worth experiencing, but you'll have to grapple with a persistently irritating interface and other rough edges to find them all.

Lovely and captivating even if it's a bit lacking in substance overall. But you can fly around a gorgeous open word as a bird and freely play a ukulele, so this one's a win in my book.

An excellent fighting game fine-tuned for tense, thrilling bouts. While the fighting is always fun, its feature set is slim, with only a handful of modes that don't stray far from the core gameplay. If you're looking for a fight, you've found a good one, but don't expect a big story mode or much side content.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is a good game that should be easier to stomach for franchise veterans than Modern Warfare. The campaign is fulfilling, albeit short. The faster-paced multiplayer is also easy enough to jump into and have fun with. It's just a shame that I can't shake that feeling that Treyarch's true vision has been held back by Activision forcing its ideals onto them.

Those who covet unique 4X factions and absorbing, atmospheric exploration should probably head elsewhere, but if you’re looking for logistical military exercises and satisfying galactic planning then Polaris Sector has you well covered.

Röki is the heartfelt story of a family divided, and a lesson about trust, family, and strength. It preserves the magic and message of the folk tales it draws inspiration from.

Assuming that you're not playing this kind of game for the relationship aspects, Pioneers of Olive Town is a good farming RPG. It continues many of the long-established trends of the Harvest Moon series, whilst adding in some welcome quality of life improvements. Although perhaps not quite on Stardew Valley's level, this is still a game that is worth playing and one that genre fans will enjoy. As a bonus, thanks to it now being on PC you don't have to deal with the Switch version's various performance issues.

Filled with great games, and there's a lot to love. But a third of them are in the other collections. You also still can't pick a game from a simple menu, which I simply can't understand.

Striking, peaceful, and wholly focused on exploring at your own pace, Sable is a joy to play. The optimization could use some serious work, but this is an extremely compelling game that offers a better open-world experience than many AAA developers have crafted.

A callback to what made Assassin's Creed a hit for many over the years. While the main character and the movement fall somewhat short, the world and reintroduction of classic mechanics make up for that in a big way.

ScourgeBringer has strong pixel visuals, extremely tight gameplay, and a high level of challenge. But a lack of variety limits its appeal.

Melding the city-building and exploration genre together shouldn't work this well. Airborne Kingdom does a fantastic job of continuously throwing new challenges at the player, while simultaneously devouring countless hours in the process. For a mere $24.99, this is a title that will absolutely give you plenty of bang for your buck.

Out on the plains and forest floors, the Wood Elf forces emphasise mobility, micro-management (which can just mean lots of using the pause button in single player), and, to perhaps a lesser extent than expected, archery prowess. They represent another smart translation from tabletop to Total War, and add further tactical challenges to Creative Assembly’s ever-evolving game through their expanded economy and unique campaign goal.

Carrying a decent amount of extra content with an enjoyable new character, Project_Hel makes Ghostrunner worth returning to for fans eager for more.

I consider my gripes with this game to be minor at best. I really didn’t know what to expect when I jumped into 2K19 for the first time, but I’m pleasantly surprised find it so enjoyable. I’m still not quite sure why the series garners so much hype every year, though. I wasn’t pulled in enough to become one of those fans, but I will admit it’s proven to be an overall fun and engaging experience nonetheless.

Imaginative mechanics and puzzle design at war with finicky, picky gameplay mechanics. Add in a borderline useless player character and you've got the recipe for a good puzzle game damaged by various annoyances.

Eldest Souls will punish you with its difficulty, but you're going to love it thanks to refreshing combat mechanics and ridiculously frantic boss fights. However, you might encounter a few issues due to visual miscues, and replayability is solely dependent on how much you wish to rerun tougher encounters.

Filled with solid level design, exciting combat, and challenging platforming, Vernal Edge is a worthwhile Metroid-like that very much has its own identity.

Imperator: Rome combines the quirks and mechanics of multiple Paradox titles, but it lacks the charm and depth to stand out on its own. It wore the trappings and regalia of Marcus Aurelius, yet, once removed, out came Commodus instead.

Runic Games take you on a wondrous mysterious journey through fantastic environments making HOB well worth your time.

Dome Keeper is an excellent rogue-lite for fans of 2D mining games.

Mortal Shell boasts refreshing mechanics that eschew the Souls-like subgenre's tried-and-tested methods. Though a bit on the short side, it oozes bone-crunching, stylish combat, and its performance is superbly optimized. Simply put, Mortal Shell manages to exceed all expectations.

Earth Defense Force 5 is very familiar, but it's the best game in the series and a huge amount of fun. Fans of action games will find a whole lot to enjoy with this one.

Wolfstride is an enjoyable anime-like mech fighting adventure with an interesting cast of characters. Other than the slow start, it's easy to ignore the parts that fall short.

ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove is an extremely welcome update to the first game in the series that retains and expands upon everything that made that game a classic.

Knights of Honor II: Sovereign does quite a few things right, though it could use more polish for many aspects of the game, starting with the voice lines that generals get.

No fusion accidents here: the merging of Persona 5 and the Musou games has resulted in a very strong Persona indeed.

Weird West does have some interesting and novel ideas. Sadly, bugs, AI issues, and questionable mechanics prove to be problematic.

Despite its difficulty, I’ve been having quite a bit of fun with Horizon Chase Turbo. It certainly does feel like a game from the 80s/90s, as they were known for being quite difficult anyway. The selection of cars and tracks is quite nice, and it’s all wrapped up in a beautiful visual style. So, if you want to take a trip down memory lane at lightning speeds, I’d definitely suggest giving it a try. Just don’t throw your controller at the screen.

The Surge 2 isn't a bad game, but it gets some pretty big things wrong. In the end, I had some fun with it, but the broken parrying, awful enemy placement, and bland level layouts made it more of a slog.

Noita isn't for everybody, but anyone who loves to learn a game's intricacies while getting mercilessly slaughtered at the drop of a hat will find a lot to enjoy.

Party Animals is a blast and a half! The music slaps, the animals are adorable, and the maps are magnificent — all of it works to create an addicting game that I want to keep coming back to, especially as more is added.

Between its strong and compelling gameplay loop and obvious love of the source material, Evil Dead: The Game is a welcome addition to the asymmetric horror pantheon.

Far Cry 6 Vaas: Insanity provides a deeper and more nuanced look at a troubled character. Unfortunately, it has a fairly restrictive rogue-lite system if you're pressed for time. Worse, there's not a lot to look forward to after your initial clear.

While the characters and voice actors add a lot of life into the group of characters present in Wild Bastards, the gameplay falls short of making it a game I would want to return to.

The White March is an expansion of gorgeous new landscapes, new companions, and new challenges. It should push players out of their combat comfort zones, and is a fine excuse for some familiar PoE questing, but doesn’t yet feel essential.

A short but entertaining and beautiful look at cyberpunk dystopia, through the unlikely lens of a gig economy taxi driver.

Broken Lines has some noticeable flaws such as performance woes, a lack of weapon variety and utility, and a poorly implemented save system. Still, it manages to entertain you during its short campaign and there are additional replayability quirks. The pause-and-play concept rewards smart, tactical decisions while you revel in the action that unfolds.

Charming, adorable, and delightful, Cat Quest 2 offers a solid adventure-RPG romp. Sadly, it's best played in short bursts due to repetitiveness, and you're bound to seek help from another player since the AI teammate can be downright incompetent.

Farming Simulator 22 seeks to diversify the series with a wealth of critical new gameplay features. It isn't perfect, and there's still some more that can be added, but this is certainly a step in the right direction for the series.

Twelve Minutes' strong narrative and star-studded cast of voice actors make it a solid mystery thriller that is slightly held back by clunky movements and occasionally janky controls.

Serene and pleasant, but short and uncomplicated, Omno has a lot of sights worth seeing.

Thoughtful, bold (in colour and execution), and with absolute faith in its players to handle being cast into the glorious unknown, Future Unfolding is a rare delight. If these words inspired any desire to play it whatsoever, then do so; before you learn too much else about it.

Chorus is a game that works in the sense that it doesn't crash your desktop, but it's just an ambulatory shell with mere vestiges of soul left in it.

An ambitious and mostly fun shooter that delivers a satisfying BioShock-inspired story, but Atomic Heart falls short of greatness due to evident feature creep, frustrating platforming segments, and silly oversights in terms of its accessibility.

Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series offers two games that are still an absolute joy to play, even if the price is too high and changes to the physics and mechanics do a bit of damage.

With its surprisingly creative level design, architecture, and platforming mechanics, Journey to the Savage Planet will wow your eyes, while its quirky humor entertains you from time to time. Unfortunately, flaws such as uninspired combat, lack of enemy variety, and a fairly short campaign mar what could've been a truly unforgettable journey.

Regiments puts some interesting spins on the Cold War RTS formula, but its sustainability and longevity are hampered by the lack of MP and multiplayer.

An open, responsive football title with a lot of individual player freedom, but one that also has dodgy keepers, absent fouls, and the usual iffy online environment. The PC community may bring it up to scratch, but at release it’s an ugly port that does a disservice to the game within.

There will be plenty of players loving the Diablo 3 Necromancer, and at the end of the day, if the majority people still playing Diablo 3 are happy with what’s included then that’s what matters. The Necromancer is reasonably enjoyable and, if you’re satisfied with Diablo 3 and all you want is a new class, then you can probably come to terms with the $15 price.

NBA 2K25 shows yet again why Visual Concepts' basketball game is leagues ahead of other titles in the genre, but the usual monetization woes hold it back like they do every year.