Shovel Knight has everything. It’s fun, the soundtrack is ridiculously good, the difficulty curve feels just right, there’s smart level design, funny writing, a story that’s surprisingly touching, and so much more.

It’s a good game overall, I just wish so much of what made the story interesting wasn’t ignored in the end.

From the many new locales and scenarios, to character development and the story’s twists and turns, Hearts of Stone is an experience that is absolutely worth checking out for fans of The Witcher 3.

The best way to describe the gameplay in Titanfall 2 is fluid and precise.

In all, if you haven’t played Bastion yet, now is probably the time to. The move to PS4 doesn’t boast many extra features, but the game itself is worth a playthrough (or two, if you’re into New Game Plus modes).

What Remains of Edith Finch is a personal story, one that really hit home for me in just about every way imaginable. It’s a game that finds beauty in death and demonstrates the importance of appreciating what little time we are given to experience what life has to offer. The story of the Finch family is strange and at times might not seem possible, but dig deep enough, and you’ll find a wonderful game with a profound perspective on life, family, and what we leave behind.

The Binding of Isaac pulls off everything it tries to do, and very well. The story is interesting, the gameplay fantastic, and the art and music are wonderful as well. The only things I found wrong with the game were that the bosses were repetitive and the challenge mode was lacking fun.

In the end, NieR Automata’s story is profound, at times heartbreaking, and in other instances you’ll spot tiny glimmers of hope. It’s an expertly crafted story that’s uniquely presented to toy with the way you perceive characters and the world surrounding them. It’s a crazy ride from beginning to end and one that completely blew me away, in spite of my own absurdly high expectations.

Even with high expectations going in The Talos Principle still blew me away. Through excellent puzzle design and a thought provoking narrative this easily stands among some of my favorites games this year.

I found the experience about as thrilling as a sudoku book.

Night in the Woods culminates in some revelations made in regards to some of the stranger things happening within Possum Springs. It’s an interesting contrast to almost everything leading up to it and ultimately delivers an interesting message that, I think, resonates with much of what Mae’s character is dealing with. Night in the Woods is unafraid to embrace a wealth of issues that young people face in their daily lives. There’s still fun to be had, parties to attend, and songs to jam out to, but it’s also about depression, anxiety, moving on, and cherishing the things that you do have. Night in the Woods delivers a powerful message that resonated with me in ways I wasn’t expecting or prepared for.

My love for Odin Sphere Leifthrasir started to drop as the repetition took hold, but ultimately I’m still left feeling pretty good about my time with the game. I might be a little burned out on many of the bosses at this point, but it’s hard not to just get completely wrapped up in the game’s presentation and storytelling. I also really appreciate the game’s inclusion of a Classic Mode that allows for people to experience the kind of gameplay that Odin Sphere offered back on PS2.

With those issues and caveat, Fallout 4 has to be the most addicting and content heavy-game we’ve played on the Playstation 4. Looking forward to spending many more countless hours exploring every nook and cranny of the Commonwealth.

Yakuza 0’s story is full of twists and turns that’ll keep you guessing and make it exceedingly hard to put the controller down. The final few hours of this game are absolutely phenomenal. I’m not sure words can properly do it justice, there’s plenty of major events that cause you to shout out to no one in particular in the middle of the night just from pure excitement.

This is easily one of the best twin stick shooters I’ve played in years.

If nothing else, for me, it’s refreshing to play a sports game that stays true to the sport while not taking itself too seriously.

Valkyria Chronicles is a deeply satisfying game and one that I really only have a few minor gripes with. By the time the credits rolled I found myself completely wrapped up in a cast of like-able characters and excited to dig into the game’s New Game +. If, like me, you never gave Valkyria Chronicles a chance then there’s no better time to see what you’ve been missing out on.

At the end of the day Salt and Sanctuary is a successful take on From Software’s Souls series, something I can’t get enough of, and it’s nice to see a different developer’s take on this style of game.

Much like last year’s Grim Fandango Remastered, Day of the Tentacle Remastered brings classic point and click adventure games to a new generation to great effect.

For newcomers like myself this remaster opens the door for a new generation to experience a piece of gaming history. It has faults, and the remaster might not be as extensive as some would hope, but Grim Fandango has aged well. More importantly Grim Fandango’s new lease on life ensures that it will be easily available to anyone for many years to come.

Thumper really isn’t like anything else I’ve played and I don’t say that lightly. Yes, there are similarities to other games in the genre, but the rush of adrenaline and existential dread felt throughout the game are just small factors in what ultimately sets it apart. Thumper is a brutal deep dive into the abyss, one that will relentlessly push you to your limits again and again.

That said Axiom Verge is a game that absolutely nails exploration/discovery and that’s an experience that people deserve to have for themselves. After three full playthroughs I can’t think of many other games that have proved to be as rewarding as this. It’s the kind of game that, just when I thought I figured it out, it would surprise me again and again.

Lara Croft GO offers a fun spin on a concept that Square Enix Montréal originally nailed with Hitman. Yet again, it offers a distilled version of what makes Tomb Raider fun and presents a pretty unique and challenging puzzle game.

I’m now in the midst of my third playthrough with this game which will mark my fourth overall run with Resident Evil 1. Somehow it manages to get better each time I start up a new file.

For as much content that’s on offer here, there’s bound to be something for everybody. If you just want to stick to Tetris, you can do that! If you’re a Puyo Purist, that’s fine too! Both are excellent in their own right and the wealth of play options only helps to sweeten the deal. Puyo Puyo Tetris is packed to the brim with game modes and alternate play styles that’s perfect for parties or solo challenge runs.

In all, it’s a must-buy if you have at least one other person to play it with on a consistent basis.

I absolutely have frustrations and disappointments in different aspects of the game, but they all come from a place of investment in this series. Is ZTD completely satisfying? No, but it’s still very, very good.

Overall, SteamWorld Heist is one of the most accessible strategy games you will ever wish to discover and play with an incredible depth of gameplay and features.

It is a clear improvement over F1 2015 with the re-introduction of key features such as career mode and an overlay of new features which serve the purpose of improving the quality and quantity of the single player and online multiplayer experiences, although it is still yet to evolve into the ultimate F1 package.

If you like platformers, you will likely love N++. The game’s physics take a bit of time to get used to, but if you play through the intro levels, you should be fit for flight in no time.

Enter the Gungeon is a fantastic game that continues to offer surprises after hours and hours into the experience. The game feels satisfying to play, and gives you the tools to succeed, and it is up to you to master the skills. The crazy weapons, enemies, and bosses all lead to an experience that is worth playing, even if you aren’t a fan of the genre.

Severed sports a solid story and a great combat system.

The Shantae series and its characters are always bursting with so much personality. These games are carefree, self-aware, and silly – in many ways an adventure with Shantae feels sort of like an old Saturday morning cartoon. Whenever I jump into a new Shantae game, I’m confident that I’m going to have a good time and that continues to be true with Half-Genie Hero.

So if you are looking for good music/rhythm game with a wide range of songs and a bit of challenge, check out Superbeat: Xonic.

There’s a linear story being told, but i never felt like I was being funneled down a straight path. I never felt restraints from where I could go or what I could explore. Even the world barriers are disguised in such a way, thanks to the map design, that it all feels natural.

Disgaea 5 is the best game in the series to date. I might prefer the story/characters in other games sure, but the game mechanics have never been more refined and fun to break.

Overall, the segments in the games are lengthy besides for in Runner and it’s a pain to restart from the beginning if you die.

Dariusburst is perfect for short play sessions and the crazy amount of content in the game means it’ll probably take me months to see everything.

Whether intentional or not Prison Architect isn’t just a creative outlet to ‘build stuff’, but it’s also made me stop and think about the kinds of things that are needed to run a facility such as this. I suppose that’s why I ensured my inmates had the ability to work and learn during their time in prison so that one day they might have a better shot in the real world. No matter how you run your prison Introversion Software has provided everyone with complete freedom to handle things in any number of ways. More importantly the campaign and a number of other quality-of-life features help to ensure that the game itself is fun and rarely overwhelming.

Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams surprised me. It’s a mechanically sound platformer that, considering the origins of the franchise, has managed to differentiate itself in a pretty big way. Simply put Giana Sisters now feels like one of the most unique platformers on the market.

At first it’s a bit off-putting realizing that your tried and true strat doesn’t work 100% of the time. It’s also the sign of a solid tactical game that won’t grow stale too soon.

It may not have a ton of content for players looking for variation, but if you embrace what Score Rush Extended offers, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding enjoyment.

Everything strips out what typically drives us towards the types of games we play. There’s no objective, rules, or scores; there’s just Everything. It presents a toy-box that’s there to simply be fun to play with and, potentially, something that’ll get you thinking about your own life and how you fit into this bizarre universe that we’ve all found ourselves in. It’s not without faults, some parts of the tutorial segments can be unclear or a bit slow for my liking, but none of that detracts from the wild journey I went on. Everything is odd, thought provoking, and quite unlike anything else I’ve ever played.

It’s a story that’s very much worth experiencing for yourself. I just wish playing the game was just as interesting.

The Fall is positioned as the first in a three part story. Without mentioning specifics I’ll just say that the game is really well written, intriguing from start to finish, and it features some great voice acting. While it’s certainly the start of a larger story I think The Fall does a fantastic job of setting up a really interesting world and ending on a crazy/satisfying conclusion.

Overall, The Banner Saga is a welcome addition to the burgeoning PlayStation Network library.

Each adventure through Hand of Fate has allowed me to imagine myself journeying through many far off places, meeting different people, and overcoming any number of obstacles. Even in the face of many technical issues I’m so hooked that I can’t help but continue to come back for more with each passing day.

The Dragon’s Trap is an accurate recreation of the original game which, for the most part, is really great. Your journey in Wonder Boy is all about exploring Monster World in each of the various cursed forms. The lizard form is able to breath fire, as a mouse, you can climb certain walls, the piranha form gives you the ability to swim, the lion is essentially a tank, and as a hawk you’ll soar through the sky. These forms break up the game well and ensures that you’ll periodically be traveling through the world in a slightly different way. They’re also great about opening up new secrets in earlier areas in the game that were previously unreachable. Things never get old and exploring is always rewarded. However, the actual movement in Wonder Boy is quite slippery and can lead to a good deal of frustration. This, combined with the continuous knock-back that can happen in certain boss fights, leads to some aggravating situations that tend to be a small blemish on an otherwise enjoyable game.

The pacing is perfect, introducing new recipes and level obstacles in a way that consistently keeps the player engaged and wondering what could possibly come next. After having three friends over to play the game, all three of them went home, separately purchased it, and played it to completion either solo or with a significant other. I’m not sure any game I’ve shown my friends before this has had the same effect.

Overall, LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a genuinely faithful recreation of the Star Wars universe, while being brilliantly entertaining, charming and as good as any LEGO Star Wars game which has came before it, therefore it is not only a highly recommended game if you are a fan of LEGO games, but also if you are a fan of the Star Wars universe.

ABZÛ should be played with as few story details known as possible. The story and your journey are made great by the surprises that happen along the way, so take your time and explore everything that ABZÛ offers to you, it is absolutely worth it.

The Chinese Room have created a compelling cast of characters with interesting stories that come together in some really cool ways throughout the game. The powerful soundtrack and beautiful landscape of Yaughton only help to make the whole experience even better.

Teslagrad gets a lot of mileage out of its mechanics, whether it’s through puzzles or boss fights.

Mutant Mudds Super Challenge is designed specifically for anyone that’s itching for more, and Renegade Kid is successful in providing just that. This isn’t a full on sequel, and that’s okay, but rather a refined and far more difficult Mutant Mudds challenge. New bosses and 20 unlockable characters from popular indie games just serve to make Super Challenge that much more enticing.

Flywrench is far more than the simplistic graphics might let on, these colored lines create diabolically difficult obstacle courses that will take the utmost skill to complete. Capitalizing off short levels and instant respawns, Flywrench follows in Super Meat Boy’s footsteps by presenting a challenge that’s harder to put down than it is to finish.

Life Goes On: Done to Death came as a pleasant surprise to me. It’s a genuinely funny and unique puzzle game that left me thoroughly entertained from start to finish and all throughout the credits. I simply can’t recommend this enough.

As long as the servers hold up and there isn’t lag during netplay, it should wind up being one of the top PSN titles of all time.

In general, the game is pretty good about introducing new characters/abilities at a steady pace to keep things interesting. That said, the moments where it’s just Shu can get pretty dull once you’ve had new abilities given and taken away in each world. What’s here is enjoyable enough, though, and the collectibles and time trials make for a decent incentive to spend just a bit more time with Shu, even after the credits.

It’s clear that Virginia is supposed to be mysterious, the absence of any dialog helps to keep things firmly planted in the unexplainable, but when there’s no payoff to any of the build up – it all starts to feel a bit meaningless.

This first chapter of King’s Quest really surprised me. Despite having no prior attachment to the series or its characters I am already sold on where this is going.

Hitman GO is fantastic no matter what platform you choose to play it on. Unlike some other games it actually understands what Hitman is about and stays true to that formula while giving us something unique.

There are some genuinely cool skills given and the later one I wish could have been used a little more before finishing the game. I’d rather not spoil any of them, because one of the early skills is truly cool and really helps give this game a single unique aspect. Instead of hearing me describe them, go take a few hours and collect them, you’ll love the run ( and may think about playing through it again right after).

This isn’t just a game about dodging rocks, it turns out. It’s about companionship (even if out of circumstance and/or boredom) and realizing that mindlessly following orders might lead to the feeling of being lost in space.

Clever use of colors and perception to create some interesting and challenging puzzles.

Despite some frustrating jailers I still really enjoyed most of my time spent with Furi. The combat is excellent and exploiting enemy weaknesses genuinely feels rewarding. Not every jailer fight is great and the intermission sequences should be shorter, but the highs greatly outweigh the lows on this one.

With its massive amount of modes and options its content is worth the asking price.

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 features three solid entries into the Kingdom Hearts series and, while there’s plenty of setup for the future, what’s here is mostly fantastic. Back Cover might be the weak point of this collection, but even that is worth checking out if you’re really into the crazy lore in this series. Simply put, Kingdom Hearts in 60FPS is wonderful and the little taste of Kingdom Hearts 3 is even better than I had hoped.

I mentioned before that Persona 4 Dancing All Night feels like a celebration of these characters. Yes, this is a fan-service game meant specifically for fans of Persona 4. That’s fine, but it’s also a legitimately fantastic rhythm game with a surprisingly great story mode.

Q.U.B.E: Director’s Cut offers some unique puzzles with an intriguing story.

I could sit here and gush about the art style and overall presentation all day, but hey, go download this game and experience it for yourself.

Cosmic Star Heroine is simply an incredible JRPG inspired adventure that’s even more impressive when you consider how small the team is that made it. Aside from a story that didn’t completely pull me in, my only real complaint is that the game’s UI can, at times, be a little unclear. In battles an AoE attack sometimes wouldn’t highlight multiple enemies (even when it’d still hit them) and in shops there didn’t seem to be a way to compare equipment. I also ran into a couple small glitches, one that forced me to reload a save file, which is a bummer, but luckily Zeboyd Games have been quick to patch out these issues. Ultimately, Cosmic Star Heroine really shouldn’t be passed up, it’s a fantastic throwback to games like Chrono Trigger and Phantasy Star that, like Shovel Knight before it, presents a modern twist that makes it a clear standout indie release.

Fantastic overall presentation.

2064: Read Only Memories presents an interesting, if not predictable, narrative that is propelled by its strong cast of characters and excellent world-building. It’s refreshing to see a developer put so much care into creating a cast as diverse and interesting as this.

I see myself coming back to Flinthook for a while to come. Like many other Tribute games, it is tightly designed; nothing feels extra, nothing feels stark. I love mashing packs open. I love unlocking relics. I absolutely hate getting hit in this game, and I love that about it. If you’re wondering whether you might like Flinthook or not, take this test: Do you like video games? (Y/N).

Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight is an excellent game. Instead of attempting to innovate, the game instead focuses on delivering a polished adventure with satisfying combat, an interesting world to explore, and lore that can naturally be uncovered by the player. There are loads of indie Metroidvanias out there, but Momodora is one that’s absolutely worth your time.

For a couple of hours (or about 240 minutes) of throwback scorechasing with an initially easy access point, buy Minutes.

Klaus isn’t perfect by any means, but is a fun puzzle-platformer that challenges the player without making it feel too easy, and at the same time not making it too frustrating.

I wasn’t really captivated by what I played in the end. The beautiful setting of the Wyoming forest and the dialogue between you and Delilah kept me wanting to progress the story, but it ended up falling flat at its conclusion.

At $5, Actual Sunlight is affordable, but it takes only about an hour and a half to explore and see everything the game has to offer.

A Rose in the Twilight is a really interesting puzzle game that properly utilizes each character’s specific abilities and uses its aesthetic to highlight key points of interest while setting a specific mood. The way everything ties back into the narrative that the game is trying to tell is done really well and makes for a really enjoyable journey, through both the good and bad times that both Rose and giant share.

I’ve had faith in Dontnod ever since Remember Me and it’s really exciting to see them deliver on an incredible season opener.

If you like pinball or well-polished new ideas, Rollers of the Realm will be right up your alley.

If you are a hardcore fan, or someone who is interested in becoming one, this is the game to buy.

Hotline Miami 2 has its issues, but it’s still a standout game.

Nova-111 is excellent. There’s enough content that’s introduced with comfortable pacing to keep the player engaged through completion.

This is a big step in the right direction for the franchise and I can only hope that things continue that way in the future.

For a well-crafted, enjoyable side-scrolling adventure, I’d recommend Adventures of Pip.

Whether you grew up with a ZX Spectrum or, like me, you’ve never seen one I think there’s a lot of great stuff here. It might be difficult for some to get used to the graphics at first, but when you do you’ll find a really fun game with some excellent music.

All in all, puzzle game fans owe it to themselves to try out Stealth Inc. 2, you won’t regret it.

It’s not without faults, of course; Flux and Singularity could be explained a little better, a run button on the world map would be welcome, and Endir’s place as a silent protagonist is a bit disappointing. Still, I Am Setsuna kept me fully engaged from start to finish and, overshadowing any complaints I might have, provided a world and characters that I care about.

Super Stardust Ultra is a classic which everyone deserves to give a try, but if you’ve played before, proceed with caution.

Layers of Fear is an incredible ride through an ever-changing house that demonstrates an understanding of the horror genre. It succeeds in creating a genuinely unsettling house that never relies too hard on cheap scares. Instead it’s filled with moments that’ll stick with me for a long time.

Arcade Mode alone is enough to get me back into playing the game regularly, but aside from that there’s still enough new additions here to make this an easy recommendation for anyone.

Hot dog costumes, door-to-door trick-or-treating, a dystopian future, and plenty of bad candy corn jokes are all just a small piece of what makes Costume Quest 2 another worthy game that should grab your attention during the month of October.

The music in Pix the Cat is fittingly fun.

There’s a lot to like about Grow Home, especially if you’re into exploration games with a unique aesthetic.

Extreme Exorcism is a pleasant surprise and a very welcome addition to the local multiplayer revival.

I like most of the songs on the track-list, but a lack of genre variety has left me wanting a little more. Even after one week of play I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be wanting to keep coming back to this one.