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.

Think of King of Seas as yet another spiritual successor to Sid Meier's Pirates! It has all the tools needed to keep you entertained for many hours. Unfortunately, it's also lacking in certain departments, leading to a more streamlined approach that can't compare to the classic.

Offensively mediocre in multiple ways, Biomutant was a waste of resources. It's not terrible, but there's no excuse for it to be this vapid and underwhelming.

There are plenty of secrets to find and the design is quite strong, even if I do occasionally find myself in an area I can’t figure out how to leave. It also runs very well, easily granting over 120fps on midline cards, even at 4K. Just Die Already is bright and colorful as well, and it’s easy to pass the time by just wandering and getting into trouble. It succeeds at what it sets out to do. Sure, it doesn’t have tight, rewarding gameplay, but it doesn’t need it. It does have scenarios where old people can get turned into piles of flesh by swarms of bees, though.

This delightful sprint is both beautiful to watch and engrossing to play. Aerial_Knight's Never Yield is a fantastic hour and a half long sprint, that features an outstanding score and plenty of narrative surprises, interweaved throughout. Now, if only we had a flow-chart to follow the actual storyline...

SMT III remains a great game, but an inflated price tag combined with some dated mechanics might make it a harder sell for some.

Siege Survival: Gloria Victis has several mechanics and concepts that look good on paper. Unfortunately, general clunkiness when it comes to the UI and controls, as well as a lack of attachment to your characters, lead to a rather uninspired romp. Once you're finished with a single playthrough, there's barely anything that's interesting to look forward to.

The visuals are strong and most of the elements are competent, but this is a middle-of-the-road game that squanders its potential with some baffling decisions.

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.

Though there are a few minor issues, Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Wrath of the Druids gives you a lot of reasons to continue Eivor's journey thanks to a lush and vibrant land to explore. Fighting the druidic cult is also a treat owing to their usage of wild animals, poisons, and flames. The additional activities you can do, such as building your trading posts and finding collectibles, add more hours to the experience.

Subnautica: Below Zero presents an exciting adventure as you explore the unknown. Whether you're trekking through the snow or diving down unfathomable depths, there's a feeling of dread as you try to survive, and a sense of wonderment as you discover something new.

Unfortunately, the biggest problem I’ve experienced in Hood: Outlaws & Legends is the atrocious matchmaking.

It jumps between gameplay styles more than I expected and doesn't scratch the same itch as its predecessor, but this is a damn good game that every fan of the series needs to play.

I was genuinely shocked to see how comprehensive the simulation experience was in Farm Manager 2021. The level of thought and detail that's went into all of the interweaving mechanics, is readily apparently and genuinely impressive. Anyone looking for a new sim to sink their teeth into should look no further.

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

Though admittedly basic, Skate City has brought a bit of the "pick-up-and-play" mechanics of mobile to PC, with mixed results. The basic visuals are countered by fairly complex controls, that are a fairly substantial time-suck to perfect. Some may not find this to be their cup of tea, but if your willing to invest the time and effort to 'git gud,' there's plenty of fun, just waiting to be uncovered.

Padded and tedious, but engrossing and enjoyable. NieR Replicant occupies a strange spot in the gaming pantheon.

While Star Wars Pinball VR has all of the fan service necessary to please any diehard fan, it runs up against a handful of minor technical and polish issues that prevent it from living up to its full potential. That said, it still outclasses every other pinball experience on the platform, so feel free to indulge your inner Jedi.

Legend of Keepers is a game that’s a lot smoother than its title. Seriously, I had written the whole review for “Legend of Keeper” before catching my mistake in editing. The art is fantastic, the writing is fitting, and the repetition might be repetitive, but not too much so. The campaign format leaves the doors wide open for future DLC, and the game already has mod support. But it’s too bad that some modders (the ones not porting Heroes of Might and Magic III models) are only interested in putting more anime waifus into the game.

Cerebral and engrossing, Insurmountable succeeds at making a tactical mountain-climbing rogue-lite. No frostbite required.

A satisfying combination of action platformer and strategy game. The former might be notably better here than the latter, but Smelter is a decently long game with great visuals and gameplay.

With multiple game-breaking bugs and hotfixes that either don't resolve the issues or come a little too late, Buildings Have Feelings Too is an awful mess that needs to be avoided.

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.

Golden Force doesn't quite have what it takes to be as good as the classics, but it's still a fairly fun time in its own right. It has some issues that make it a bit of an annoyance in some spots, but it still mostly does what it aims to.

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.

Although it would have been nice to see a little more innovation from Cold Steel III, this finale to the Erebonia arc is still one of the best JRPGs I've ever played. The world-building and character development are as exquisite as ever, while the gameplay mechanics are still well above average, albeit unextraordinary. Regardless, assuming you have played at least Cold Steel III and know enough about the Trails lore, this latest addition is well worth your time.

A colorful throwback to '80s action-arcade titles that looks and feels like the real deal. Challenging and enjoyable, it's worth a look for anyone who wants a new old game to rip through.

Ashwalkers flaunts a system of choices, which only matter as a means to an end. The gameplay tends to be repetitive, and the story rarely strays from being formulaic and familiar. Despite all this, the environments are fairly unique and the run time is mercifully short.