Destroy All Humans’ impact on you is definitely going to depend on how much you played the original release. As a fan of the original, I was sat gleefully destroying all the humans and basking in the improvements, but I could also see people who haven’t played the 2005 release not quite “getting” it. For those in the same boat as me, it’s exactly what it needs to be: a faithful improvement on the original game, and an indication that Crypto has plenty of life in him yet. Hopefully it can pave the way for an all new adventure someday soon.

Magic 2014 isn’t much of a sequel to Magic 2013 - more of an iteration – but it is more Magic, which is a good thing.

Trigger Happy Havoc could use some more polishing, but fans of mystery or oddball characters will want to snatch this up.

Sonic Frontiers is a strange, yet fun time. The individual levels showcase Sonic at his fast-paced, ring-hoarding best, and some of the overworlds sport rewarding exploration mechanics. The insistence by Sonic Team to jam in minigames that block progress to the story is frustrating to say the least, and some of the larger maps’ designs feel a little haphazard. Overall, though, the weirdness of the story will keep some going just to see, well, where the hell it’s all going. It’s weird how much this doesn’t feel like a Sonic game outside of the individual levels, but this is an interesting direction that Sonic Team has taken their blue blur, and hopefully we will see a continued evolution that coalesces into something great.

While certainly not the best adventure game I’ve played, there’s no doubting that Maize is filled with heart. The love that went into development shows throughout, and it’s why I found myself constantly laughing at all of the game’s silly jokes throughout. If you’re looking for three or four hours of laughs, and don’t mind some standard puzzle design, then you’ll find a lot to enjoy here.

EVE: Valkyrie triumphantly shows the promise of virtual reality. The addition of head tracking turns a pretty basic space combat game into a captivating experience, even if it might not have long legs. It’s one of the best showcases for what PlayStation VR is capable of, but also a clear reminder that the best is yet to come.

Styx: Shards of Darkness improves on its predecessor significantly without having to steer away from its core attributes. Everything from its visuals and dialogue to its gameplay and story have been upgraded and polished to an impressive sheen. It’s still far from being perfect and its style of stealth and combat might not be for everyone, but it’s definitely a challenging and enjoyable experience that sometimes forces you to think hard first before acting.

Awakened is a good, dementia filled experience for anyone who liked Dead Space 3 and was left wanting more, but will do little to sway new owners into picking up the game just for the downloadable content.

This is a game where I could plug a few minutes in, try to make some kind of progress, and gain experience either way. There may not be a ton of complexity to be had, but what it offers is plenty of variety, fast-paced action, and a desire to push forward. While the labyrinth is full of dangers, the rewards can be great.

LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a solid LEGO experience — certainly in the top tiers as far as LEGO games are concerned — but still just a LEGO experience that isn’t looking to change the status quo while bringing the heart and soul of a critically and commercially lauded film to your console, brick by expected brick.

If you can get past the long AI turns and the generally long matches, then Blood Bowl 2 is worth buying.

They say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and Just Dance is a series that remains the same at its very core simply because it works.

If you can get past the UI and control issues, then by all means, get Wasteland 2: Director’s Cut on PlayStation 4. It offers up hours of engrossing and strategic gameplay, and is probably worth the $60 if you’re a fan of old-school RPGs. However, if you have a decent PC, then I recommend getting it on there – it’ll be a better optimized experience.

Besides dealing with computer-controlled submission attempts, I largely feel that EA Sports UFC 3 is the best playing mixed martial arts game to date. That’s why it was so disappointing to find out that so few of the modes managed to capture my interest.

Evolve has a hint of greatness, but a lack of content at launch and a jarring amount of premium launch and planned DLC hold it back. What we have here is an evolution of the Left 4 Dead formula, not a revolution.

There is a lot to like about Minutes and its most egregious flaw is that it ends so soon.

If you’re in the mood for a more light-hearted take on the procedurally-generated survival genre, then you may want to check out Portal Knights. Its inclusion of major RPG elements gives you new unlocks to look forward to and experiment with, and its easy yet robust crafting system always tasks you with collecting something different. Combined with specialized and upgradeable crafting stations, Portal Knights feels like it has more focus than many games in the procedural genre. These varying gameplay mechanics all meld together to produce a game that is good fun to play with friends.

Sketchcross is a solid game that fans of puzzle games should definitely find enjoyment in. Sadly, its interface is not super intuitive and there isn’t a tremendous amount of puzzles. Throw in the difficulty curve and this might not be the best game for players who never experienced nonograms before.

Codemasters has at least put together a great foundation on which to build. They’ve promised that as well as that ranked mode, new content and features will roll out to players going forward and if they make the right steps, Onrush could end up being an absolutely huge deal. At launch though, it serves as a great taste of what could be, even if it could go with just a little bit more fuel in the tank.

The survival genre is so crowded that there’s little ground left to break, but The Forest has done it.

As a simulation, Birthdays the Beginning is a fairly unique approach to the open-world sandbox simulator. It does a fantastic job of demonstrating how important it’s to maintain balance within an ecosystem, in order for life to thrive. It also helps to drive home how even the smallest of organisms can make a gigantic impact on the world around them. The main issue is that the campaign is so focused on introducing new mechanics that it seems to lose sight of this unspoken thesis. In turn, this leads the player on a mission to track down answers that should instead be provided to them at a glance. Due to this, it’s hard to shake the feeling of being thrown into the deep end of an algae coated swamp, without a life raft.

It’s genuinely difficult to not be charmed by the foul-mouthed shenanigans of Rad Rodgers. The game somehow manages to morph extremely dated design ideals into a form that is palatable to the modern console crowd.

The Magic Circle will appeal to anyone who can laugh at themselves.

It’s not a groundbreaking game, and it’s not in contention for game of the year, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a fun.

While World of Tanks may remain the king of tank games simply due to an already entrenched player base, Armored Warfare is a good match for those who prefer a slightly more arcade-like experience. Since the game is free to play, those interested should definitely give it a download.

Sakura Wars isn’t going to be for everyone. It’s oddly paced, character-focused, and anime-inspired, but that’s also some of the best things about it. If even a tiny bit of you is interested in that description, there’s a chance you’ll really enjoy the craziness that Sakura Wars puts on the table.

While the writing leaves a lot to be desired in some regards, the story told is a compelling one, and earning the trust of the icy suitors was a more nuanced and sweet process than I expected.

MonsterBag‘s art style, presentation, and soundtrack are commendable. Its weird and eccentric world drew me in to the point where I attentively watched all of the un-skippable cut-scenes out of curiosity.