On one hand I really like a lot of what Fall Guys has to offer. It's bright, colorful, zany, and it controls well, but some of the round types are simply obnoxious and the RNG makes each game a crapshoot.

It demands dedication (unless you’re a series vet) and neither AI nor UI are exactly flawless, but once you’re entrenched Hearts of Iron IV reveals itself as a capable and absorbing alt-history WW2 generator.

Total War: Three Kingdoms - Eight Princes feels familiar, although, sadly, also a repeat of what you've already gone through in the past. Although you can choose from eight princes, your overall experience (especially if you've put in hundreds of hours into the base game) would be more like a "7" instead.

Vampire: the Masquerade - Coteries of New York is a well-written interactive story in the World of Darkness that fans of the franchise will enjoy. While mostly a good read, it's let down by repetitive visuals, bugs, and relatively shallow choices. Players used to approaching Vampire as an RPG should temper their expectations.

Nuclear Blaze could have been one of the best firefight games ever made. It has the mechanics, level design, and presentation down pat. But, it squanders its potential with a super short runtime and massive amounts of artificial difficulty.

RAD has excellent gameplay and great visuals but is very, very difficult. Fans of extremely hard games will likely get a kick out of it, but people looking to slowly power up in order to make their rogue-lites easier should stay away.

A notable drop in depth compared to the Nioh games, Wo-Long still has some engaging additions inspired by Sekiro. I often enjoyed myself but repetition and a horribly uneven difficulty curve certainly don't help.

Overall, Sairento VR is a solid VR game, it may not have the polish of some AAA VR titles but that’s to be expected as Mixed Realms are a tiny indie studio which is probably why bugs have slipped through the net. This is a game that will challenge your VR skills, the weapons respond well and the movement is excellent which is a huge plus in VR. Despite its flaws, Sairento VR is definitely worth checking out if you’re looking for some fast-paced VR action.

Alone With You joins the ranks of others who have used the sci-fi lens to successfully scrutinise the human condition, but does stumble in some of its endeavours. The decision to include actual, puzzle-based gameplay rather than presenting the narrative as pure visual novel was, I think, a good one, but the pacing falls victim to its own intended sense of routine. Ultimately, I found the story of the colony’s fate took precedence over any romantic entanglement hologram pals, but that 5-6 hour tale is a compelling essay on the anxieties of extreme isolation.

Cult of the Lamb relies on its demented humor and zany ideas that add charm. Sadly, some mechanics are either too streamlined or troublesome. You're bound to enjoy it for several hours until it becomes repetitive to a fault.

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.

Brilliant, infuriating, beautiful, frustrating, fantastic, and hateful. Battlefield 1 is a great game, but perhaps not one for the more casual solo player.

Like the stereotypical school heartthrob, Need for Speed is vapid but beautiful and strangely exciting. It's a surprisingly enjoyable arcade racer, but one that's more for casual downtime than for a serious commitment.

The match-up of Warhammer and Total War is as harmonious as hoped, adding tremendous faction diversity and fantasy flavour to the familiar series mechanics. It’s technically sound too, but several old flaws (like AI blind spots in sieges) remain. An invigorating addition to the series, nonetheless.

Once it costs money, it’s a more difficult sell – but I’d argue it’s still one of the larger and more impressive bits of XCOM 2 DLC, even if most of its additions are outside of the core game itself. At that point, you should already know if a skirmish mode and some more tactical gubbins are what you’re after. But as a surprising, generous, and sizeable offering, it’s hard not to recommend this as a reason to dive back into the fight against our alien oppressors.

Broken Pieces has strong world design and interesting mechanics, even if the action feels needlessly shoehorned in.

Octopath Traveler's beautiful art, music, and in-depth combat system make it a journey worth taking, despite the haphazard plotting and somewhat repetitious nature.

The series returns with its incredible first-person shooting, wild gunfights, and a ton of Nazi killing. Unfortunately, that's about all it brings. The narrative is fairly shallow and it does little to add anything new while we wait for the next main Wolfenstein game.

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom has a lot going for it, but its frustrations and pacing issues are a detriment to the overall experience.

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.

Oninaki does a lot of things right. It has a compelling story and solid gameplay but doesn't take either far enough to reach the level of greatness.

Short and extremely easy, Kao the Kangaroo won't win over anyone that isn't itching for a new 3D platformer. But it's still fairly enjoyable and a solid way to spend a few hours for anyone looking for a collection-based throwback.

Can’t fault the professionalism in pumping out one of these every year; but though Football Manager 2017 is up to standard and makes some iterative tweaks of note, it’s getting harder to ignore certain systemic issues which remain unaddressed.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 doesn't hit all the notes of its predecessor, but it's still a gorgeous re-imagining of one of Sega's finest action games.

Per Aspera reaches for lofty heights, but I could never shake the impression that the difficulties I encountered were more because of the game breaking down rather than Mars being a hostile place. But who knows, patches do wonders these days.

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.

Metamorphosis is a good time with great visuals and an excellent atmosphere. But it's super short and the storytelling isn't quite as good as it could be.

In a lot of ways, it’s a game made for a specific audience. I’m part of that audience, and while there’s a bunch of stuff I wish was different, or better tuned, or more coherent (and maybe was a few chapters shorter, as the real climax of the game takes place a little way before the end) I had a bloody good time. It’s not for everyone – certainly not for those expecting a deep horror experience – but it scratches my Resident Evil 4 itch in a stylish and pleasing way.

Sonic Origins works magic with Anniversary Mode, allowing you to play four classic Sonic games in widescreen. However, the speed bumps, ranging from features moved to DLC and a lack of great content, bring the fun to a crawl.

In tandem, the (free) Banks 1.5 update and Utopia contribute a splendid set of features and mechanical changes to Stellaris. Taken alone, Utopia is more the luxury trimmings to Banks’ essentials, but it’s a fine package of unique species specialisation and mega-engineering all the same.

Dungeon Defenders: Awakened is a fun time, especially with others. But it doesn't have as much content as the game it's remaking yet, meaning that people still playing that one might be reluctant to move onto this version.

Despite the glitches I encountered, it was fun hauling such big pieces of cargo around. It definitely provides a different driving experience than what you usually find in American Truck Simulator. It’s worth trying if you’re looking for something to spice the sim up a bit.

Creepy and compelling, the game is finally officially out of Japan and offering a good time for series fans. Even if the controls and movement speed still leave a lot to be desired.

Over-linearity and rubbish dungeon design bog it down a bit, but the combat, characters, and rather unusual plot still make Tales of Berseria a tale worth experiencing.

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.

Iron Rain is a good game on its own merits, but it's simply not as good as EDF5. It is a pretty different experience that's easy to recommend to series fans that are hungry for more, though.

Packed with plenty of hours of great gameplay, but a far cry from what it could have been, Ninja Gaiden Master Collection is both worth playing and worth being pretty mad about.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say the AI is broken. It is just stupid, as it always has been. If you could put up with it in the last few Total War games, or maybe didn’t notice, then it is no reason to put you off this title. Despite my complaints about the AI, and some of the campaign mechanics needing some tweaking, I am impressed by this game. The sense of historical authenticity at times has transported me back to this time period, and overall I think this is better than CA’s last historical outing, Total War: Attila.

While Duck Detective: The Secret Salami has an incredible voice cast, colorful characters, and an intriguing plot, I was let down by the puzzles and gameplay. There were a few puzzles that I solved on my own with no issue, but many puzzles had clues that left me in the dark instead of guiding me.

A constrained experience compared to what This War of Mine usually offers. The Last Broadcast tries to pull at the heartstrings, but you're mostly playing as Esma crafting or exploring, while your husband idly waits for something to happen.

The Almost Gone is like a fleeting memory; it's the tragic tale of abuse and loss, captured in a series of blurry vignettes. Its puzzle mechanics, although fairly simple, are refined, even if they aren't explored to their fullest. The two-hour story sits at the forefront of the experience and never overstays its welcome. In fact, The Almost Gone would likely benefit from an extra hour, but what we got is plenty good on its own.

A faithful genre piece, Aven Colony takes the socio-economic juggling of settlement building games like Tropico and Banished, transports it to space, and establishes a pretty successful outpost.

Blizzard has created a solid team FPS but right now it's light on content.

A frantic co-op shooter in the same vein as Contra, Blazing Chrome is an electrified, 16-bit inspired run-and-gun game that will keep your trigger finger numb and your profanities loud.

The characters you meet in Night Call are the stars of this noir-style thriller. Interestingly, the crime plot takes a backseat to meeting the residents of Paris and learning about their struggles and success. Unfortunately, the game becomes repetitive after the first case due to duplicated dialog and a lack of gameplay evolution.

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.

Overall, I liked Wenjia. It has really pretty visuals, tight gameplay, and is fun to play. I’m not sure if it justifies a $9 price tag, and it certainly doesn’t do much to really stand out as a must-have title. Still, fans looking for a short 2D platformer will likely find that it fits the bill rather nicely. As it stands, I mostly see this to be a perfectly recommendable game that’s held back only by how short and barebones it is. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I’d probably wait for the inevitable sale to get it for cheaper.

A chaotic dust bowl of an open world, rendered and recorded with Avalanche's usual technical excellence on PC. Like Max's car some parts are a little ramshackle, but if you stick to causing bedlam there's plenty of fun to be had.

Although it isn't perfect, Sniper: Ghost Warrior Contracts manages to hit its mark. With a simple yet effective campaign presentation, massive locations and stunning visuals, and the thoroughly engaging gameplay that keeps you coming back for more due to a user-friendly progression system, it's the best Ghost Warrior title to date.

Kakarot is mediocre as a game, but excellent as a Dragon Ball experience. The combat is just okay, the world is mostly empty, and the game has too much fluff, but as a longtime fan I enjoyed myself a lot.

Vambrace: Cold Soul is an engaging and intriguing offering for roguelike fans, mixing fantasy, anime, and horror. Unfortunately, barebones combat and a somewhat inconvenient user interface can hamper your enjoyment.

A wonderfully stylish game with puzzles that will have you pondering way beyond the confines of your playtime. The whole mysterious package is nicely wrapped up in a plot that will have you guessing just as much as the varied conundrums.

Quotation forthcoming.

Although Naruto X Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections brings along some incredible battle mechanics and detailed customization elements, the game is lacking in a decent single-player story mode. Special Story mode wasn't very interactive or interesting for my tastes.

Well-written dialogue and top-quality voice acting can make The Magnificent Trufflepigs endearing, but a dull gameplay loop and narrative missteps might leave a bad aftertaste.

Although it shows promise early on, Into the Pit runs out of new tricks astoundingly quickly, leading to endless repetition and a total lack of challenge.

Simultaneously engrossing while desperately in need of focus and polish, Shattered is a hard game to recommend in its current state. But its strengths will make it worth a look for fans of Souls-likes when more of its issues are ironed out.

The exploration, narrative elements, art style, and audio are all excellent in Recompile, but the platforming begins to feel redundant after a while. Especially since the level design doesn't provide any clear direction and leads to regular backtracking and second guessing. There are also missed opportunities where the gameplay could have been more interesting and balanced. Still, the game should scratch that itch for those always looking for something new to experience.

Even though the career has been completely redesigned, it doesn't make much sense to nerf all riders before they've left the gate. And though the action on the track is still very solid, there are still plenty of sharp edges that are in need of polish. Especially if you played last year's installment, it may be best to steer clear of this outing.

Solid in some ways, less-than-desired in others, Pacer is a fairly good futuristic racing game with some caveats.

Despite its strong first impressions, Curved Space lacks the true variety to stand out in the crowd. You will find plenty to enjoy over the span of its brief runtime, but it isn't substantial enough to warrant a replay. Only diehard genre fans need apply.

A Juggler's Tale drops the ball some with its game design, but puts on a worthwhile show due to its presentation and story.

Deliver Us Mars is decent enough but lacks the focus and narrative strengths that made the last game such a joy.

Although it has it's charm, there is little substance to this cat based pirate game. It is a game decidedly marketed at young children.

Pumpkin Jack is a competent Halloween platformer that's too generic, shallow, and short to make it a must-play.

Although certainly not extraordinary, MotoGP 21 is a decent enough racing game. Some more innovation would have been nice but given the complications caused by COVID, I can understand the limitations in place. Series veterans will most likely enjoy this but I can't see it attracting many newcomers with so many great racing options already on the market.

Samudra never makes any major waves but is still an enjoyable, gentle journey.

Windbound has lovely visuals and some solid ideas. But it's held back by how old the game's loop gets. Plus, the sailing is so slow and janky that it really . . . takes the wind out of the game's sails. Okay, I'm sorry about that one.

King's Bounty II offers numerous options to keep you playing its 40-hour campaign. Unfortunately, it suffers from questionable design, janky movement while exploring, and confusing alignment system outcomes. It can be a treat for long-time fans, but it's also rough around the edges.

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.

Claire de Lune is a game that definitely has its enjoyable parts, but the heavily-advertised narrative is problematic and many of the platforming sections are downright disappointing. If the price wasn't so steep, this would be an easier sell to those who like challenging puzzle adventure games. All of this along with the bugs and lingering performance issues make it hard to recommend.

Resident Evil Village Winters' Expansion adds some more content to the game. But it's mostly all rehashed and overpriced.

A very enjoyable 3D platformer let down by a host of technical issues. Clive 'N' Wrench is well worth playing, but you may want to wait for some patches.

Embr is fun when it focuses on fighting fires and rescuing people, but there are too many gimmicks and unnecessary additional ingredients thrown into this pot. There's enjoyment to be had, but it could have been a lot more compelling had it just gone the obvious route.

Interesting and fun at times, The Invisible Hand pretends to be about gameplay, but it's all just an illusion.

Hot Wheels Unleashed has a lot of good concepts and ideas that are sullied by awkward execution and weird design choices. Its physics could use some more fine-tuning, and its AI needs to be rebalanced, along with a revamped track builder. Yet, there's still some glimmer to its toy car shine.

Phantom Brigade is great fun, but not for the length of time you're expected to be playing it. Any long-term engagement is hampered by a lack of variety.

Buoyed by beautiful visuals, great performance, and entertaining exposition, Bright Memory: Infinite still feels like a small part of a complete game.

Whilst certainly unique and interesting, Supermarket Shriek does have its limitations. As a single-player game, it struggled to keep my attention and the gameplay is fairly repetitive. But if you do have a spare friend and a couple of microphones to use there's potential for some good fun.

There is a good game hiding underneath Overwatch 2's predatory shell, one that is soon to evolve into an even more massive headache for players as the game evolves.

Need for Speed Unbound has the racing and the world down pat, but the game is marred by too many roadblocks and a heaping helping of tedium.

Victoria 3 is, without a doubt, grand in scale and scope, and it's downright gorgeous, too. Sadly, the countless mechanics mean that there are too many moving parts, which lead to more questions than answers. The automation and streamlining of battle is, likewise, a baffling change. Even as a veteran of Paradox Interactive's games, this is still one series that I can't get behind.

Despite having some interesting concepts and refreshing mechanics, Galactic Civilizations IV suffers from an unintuitive UI, lack of tooltip information, and production queue bugs.

This new entry into the Disgaea series makes some good changes with the 3D models and auto battler being particular highlights. Plus, the move to PC has fixed the various performance issues that were present on the Switch and having all of the DLC bundled together is a nice bonus. Even so, the overall package offers less value than its predecessors with it having fewer classes, weaker characters, and a general lack of gameplay innovation. Disgaea 6 Complete is still a decent entry, but it's also a step back when compared to both Disgaea 4 and Disgaea 5.

Despite checking many of the most important boxes in the adventure game design guide, Retro Machina is a beautifully envisioned world waiting to be demolished. However, all of the best elements are derailed due to monotonous combat and drastically over-engineered puzzles. This will be a pretty ride, but one you might never see through to completion.

Circus Electrique has a plethora of intriguing ideas. Unfortunately, most of these don't mesh well with the core gameplay, leading to a tedious romp.

Despite its dated aesthetics, RetroMania Wrestling can still bring the pain. Unfortunately that struggle translates to issues both in and out of the ring. Sometimes, it's important to consider why design decisions were abandoned in the past, rather than meticulously recreating frustrating mechanics for modern audiences in the name of authenticity.

Samurai Warriors 5 runs well and has a solid story presentation, but it's barely different from the last entry in terms of gameplay, save for having less than a third of the movesets.

Cute, but featuring far too high of a price tag to justify the amount of content it includes.

Gorgeous and aided by satisfying combat mechanics, Young Souls is damaged by inconsistent difficulty, balance issues, bugs, and cheap boss encounters.

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

Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate is an interesting game. It does a lot of things right and is the prototypical mystery dungeon title. And if that's all you want, then look no further. But I suspect most people are going to find the dungeons frustrating and the permanent death mechanic infuriating. This is an acquired taste that you'll either love or hate. Unfortunately, my personal feelings fall closer to the latter.

Babylon's Fall has fast, flashy combat and a generally enjoyable structure, but is packed with issues, ranging from it's limited co-op function to live service elements, which appear to have sealed its fate.

Decent gameplay and decent level design can't save The Chant from its poor story and total lack of scares.

A good game that needs some serious work. All the content is in and the gameplay is enjoyable, but it needs some serious polish to reach its potential.

While the game shows promise, it is hindered by questionable decisions and plagued by stability issues. Cities: Skylines II might not change your life, but some fans could enjoy investing some hours crafting their cities, as long as the game does not crash and burn.

With excellent visuals and lots of creative, unique ideas, Fashion Police Squad could have easily been something special. If only it wasn't so needlessly aggravating, cramped, and tedious.

Eximius: Seize the Frontline attempts to implement some interesting ideas and design concepts. However, an array of technical problems and lack of polish hold back what could have been a great title. Perhaps with some more development time, Eximius can eventually fulfill its huge potential.