LEGO Voyagers is a rather brief affair (my first playthrough clocked in at just over three hours), but each minute brings with it something new and novel. Whether you’re working together to repair a train track or taking a minute to unwind and play on a makeshift see-saw, it’s packed with these special moments that highlight the importance of friendships in our lives. It’s also, surprisingly, an incredibly emotional game (especially during its final moments), but I won’t dare spoil any of that for you. Even if LEGO Voyagers could be reworked into a strictly single-player affair, the result wouldn’t be half as good as it currently stands. It’s very much a game that’s not about the destination, but rather, the journey you make together.

The game is the perfect entry for newcomers to the series and also provides plenty of depth and Atelier staples for those series veterans. The improved combat, ease of item crafting, and the relaxed time constraints make for an enjoyable game without making it a snooze fest.

Eric Chahi’s latest creation is a worthwhile PlayStation VR experience, especially if you like your worlds to be mysterious and interesting to explore. The game never holds your hand, instead leaving it up to you to discover its secrets. The puzzles can feel confusing at first until you get used to the game’s unexplained mechanics, although the simple controls help things along. Even though the story is short, the sandbox mode will keep players coming back to this unique environment until your imagination runs out.

Up until that bizarre glitch, enjoying Alan Wake Remastered was like the best kind of deja vu. Muscle memory steered me toward the hidden caches, triggered reminders to backtrack just a little here and there or look around that corner for collectibles. Alan’s somewhat stiff voice, the ancient rockers, Barry—all of these things, campy as they were, welcomed me home. Those cold waters of Cauldron Lake sure are impossible to escape.

It may not be a tremendous shift in the landscape of soccer titles, but FIFA 20 has certainly proved to be a fertile ground for experimentation within EA Sports.

As a remake of 1989’s game of the year, Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap is a brilliant and beautiful recreation.

The Darkness II feels very much like a sequel in transition. Digital Extremes tried to bring back components that made the original Darkness successful, while trying to improve upon the game and add their own voice in as well. The result is a solid success that is fun and very enjoyable, but doesn't improve drastically on the original.

It puts players in a position not seen in most games, entirely proactive and in control of the environment.

Rival Megagun is a fun, frantic bullet hell game with a unique competitive mechanic. The retro-inspired art style is pixel-perfect, which is paired with an equally retro soundtrack.

I Am Dead is a hidden object game where players can get as much or as little out of it as they wish. Those following the story will find a short but simple game, perhaps too simple for some. The secondary objectives add more to do but seem like a compromise to keep adventure veterans entertained seeing as they carry very little reward. Away from the gameplay, I Am Dead dances around the raw emotions of death but deals with its impacts in a pleasant way. All living things must come to an end but memories can live on and have an impact on the future. Whether this game will be remembered in the future remains to be seen.

Subnautica: Below Zero will grow on you, if you give it time. While the beginning hours aren’t nearly as rough as the last time around, a dedicated session or two of several hours is essentially mandatory before the adventure really starts to open up. After that, though, the sense of exploration is fantastic, the story is engaging, and the views can be spectacular. Fans of Subnautica should pick this up as soon as they can, and anyone else interested in exploration-style games should also give it a shot. Subnautica: Below Zero continues in its predecessor’s footsteps in all the right ways, with some additions that help make the adventure more accessible. You’ll be glad you took the plunge.

Wild Hearts seems to have the right ideas about what a modern monster-hunting game needs. If it could inject some of the flashier bits from their other games, then Omega Force would definitely have a fierce competitor on its hands in the monster hunting genre of games. Right now, it does of course stand in Capcom’s shadow, but suddenly this subgenre has started heating up. Competition breeds innovation, and it’s exciting to wonder what we’ll see next.

EA Canada went to great lengths to listen to their critics from the previous release and have made a bunch of much needed improvements to EA Sports UFC 2.

Beats its predecessor in every way, delivering top-notch performance and presentation tweaks to bring you what you see on game day every Sunday. Crisp graphics, huge amounts of gameplay options, and a thriving online community are the perfect game-winning play that Madden needs to stay relevant.

The game's accessibility remains a key strength and highlight throughout both sides of the game, enabling both casual fans of squad shooters and more hardcore fans to find something they'll enjoy.

There’s an entertaining story accompanying a decent-length campaign, there’s a handful of multiplayer options, and strategy is required if you’re going to play against another person.

World War II was the right move. Call of Duty reaches back to its roots to bring players an entry worthy of the series’ namesake. The campaign is emotional, multiplayer is classic, and Nazi Zombies is downright dark and terrifying. No matter which kind of player you are, there is something for everyone, whether it’s a cinematic story, a competitive and social multiplayer, or an immensely difficult battle against undead Nazis. Call of Duty: WWII is another incredible package of experiences, each distinct from the others, but tied together by the unifying themes of World War II that deserve your attention.

WRC 8 is a rally racing fan’s dream.

For fans of Vanillaware’s games, this is a no-brainer. Muramasa Rebirth is the more complete version of its Wii predecessor. With an amazing art style, fast action, and even some humor, sidescroller fighting game fans will find a lot to like here. This is one of the Vita’s prettiest games, and is fun to boot!

EA Sports has, yet again, created the most true-to-life golf experience you can get without actually swinging a club. Though, when the PlayStation Move releases later this Fall, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 will support the motion-controller, which will have you actually swinging your way to a hole-in-one.

While it’s not a must-own shoot ’em up collection, any shmup fan will have a good time with Ray’z Arcade Chronology. RayForce and RayStorm are easy recommendations, and the laser lock-on feature helps the games find a unique identity and stick out in a crowded genre. While RayCrisis was a disappointment in 1998, it still has plenty of historical value and rounds out the trilogy nicely. It’s always great to see game history lovingly preserved, and this is no exception.

Lost in Random is a magical adventure, and though its dice and card-based combat system never achieves a significant depth at which it could, its still a worthwhile journey. Zoink’s strength lies in building wonderous, mysterious, and frankly just weird characters and worlds. Hand-in-hand with Even and Dicey, you won’t be disappointed at getting lost in Random.

Some games allow us to escape reality, and some force us to take a long hard look at it. Detroit: Become Human is one of those games that straddles the border between entertainment and reality. The themes it covers are very real, and it allows us to get a unique perspective on societal problems we may have never given much thought to before. No matter who you are, no matter your race, gender, political affiliation, age, or economic standing, you can find something in Detroit that will resonate with you. Detroit was never an easy game to play. Many of the choices were hard ones to make, and there's no real right answer. It's a game that cautions us not to repeat mistakes of the past. My choices shaped the story and personalized it, allowing me to see those decisions play out in myriad unique ways, plot holes, clumsy controls, and all. Even as human as we are, we are always becoming human, and no matter which path you take, Detroit is our story.

Offers a lot to enjoy, but the age is really starting to creep up on it.

Thankfully, EA delivered a product that warrants the conversion from its veteran PC status to the king of high-definition gaming. The game sports a creative suite of tools and items to provide an adequate amount of customization without becoming overly complex for the user.

While I can’t help but feel I’d rather boot up Steam and play my PC copy, Everspace still occupies a meaningful spot on any PS4 hard drive. It’s enough of a roguelite as to give people a taste of the wild side while not offending their modern sensibilities, and fans of the genre will find great creativity in applying the dungeon-crawling formula to the backdrop of outer space.

Investigating gruesome murders in AI: The Somnium Files is fun even though it’s not particularly challenging. What really makes this game worth playing is its gritty sci-fi story and engaging characters. The mix of oddball characters work perfectly together to make you experience a rollercoaster of emotions, and piecing together all the threads of the story will reveal some surprising plot twists.

Both player selection and poor teammate AI could be improved by patches, but right now they make every match become frustrating in spots. It’s incredibly disappointing to see a game that gets so much right also proceed to get a few important things dead wrong. There is still fun to be had, especially in the Be A Pro mode, but the action on the ice isn’t nearly as satisfying as it should be.