All in all, Pokémon Conquest is solid across the board, but it is lacking in a few key areas that are likely to turn away non-Pokémon fans and hardcore strategy players. However, if you don't go in expecting the next Final Fantasy Tactics or Tactics Ogre, then there's plenty to enjoy.

The 2025 remake of Amerzone – The Explorer’s Legacy is a worthwhile journey whether you’re returning to its familiar rivers and jungles, or if it’s your first time strapping into a Hydrafloat. You will best enjoy it if you take your time and let it sweep you into the well-thought-out pace retained from the original game’s designer, the late Benoît Sokal, who passed away in 2021. From intro to credits, it is an unabashedly classic adventure.

Yakuza Kiwami is a fantastic remake that effortlessly immerses you in the world of Kamurocho, Tokyo.

Overall, between the game’s story and gameplay, nothing sticks out as individually exceptional. Still, Final Fantasy comes together as an experience that is better than the sum of its parts. The Pixel Remaster does an excellent job of keeping the surprisingly well-aged gameplay that started the series intact while updating it with more modern pixel art and a beautiful soundtrack. Outside of a few confusing moments and poorly balanced bosses, Final Fantasy is a game I would readily recommend to modern RPG fans, and it’s a great introduction to the genre’s classics.

All the pieces of Olympia Soirée work together seamlessly like the colors of a rainbow naturally drawing together. Just as we all comprise multiple roles, some given to us by family or tradition and others that we seek out ourselves, Olympia Soirée takes its roles of comfortingly traditional and refreshingly modern otome with pride and executes them with great skill. The welcome mixture of seeking out a soulmate and working towards societal change bestows great merit on the game’s storytelling as a whole: just like how looking for love in real life doesn’t have to get in the way of your other goals, an emphasis on romance doesn’t have to get in the way of an interesting story. Olympia Soirée is proof positive that an emphasis on romance, or that being “a game for the female audience,” should never by itself be used as a point of contention against a game.

Great characters, fun story, witty script.

Any detachment we may have felt as we slowly immersed ourselves into this hellish world should be lost here. Those who've hungered for each coming episode may experience some tunnel vision as they dive into their monitors and become a part of the group's lives.

Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony is a wild ride which will leave you feeling both hope and despair, and that's exactly what I was looking for

Awakening might feel rushed at times, but it tells an important story and allows the Commander of the Grey to kick tremendous ass, and there's little more satisfying than that.

Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals may fall short in a few areas, but it more than makes up for it in its dynamic gameplay.

An otherwise delightful and nostalgic JRPG, Octopath Traveler's lack of an integrated story leaves the experience feeling empty in the end.

As a long time Pokémon fan, Let's Go has warmed my cockles and brought me the same joy I experienced when I first picked up Yellow all those years ago. With Generation 8 on the horizon, there are many lessons these upcoming entries can take from Let's Go, although the entire format should always remain separate. I'll always want the mainline games, and I don't see myself continually coming back to Let's Go like I have done the standard entries, but as a gateway for newer, younger players, I can't think of anything more perfect that Let's Go.

Dungeons of Hinterberg is a celebration of recreation and an assertion that video games can be not only a fun escape but a chance to dream of something outside of our routine spheres of life. It’s wonderfully imaginative, beautiful, and sometimes trippy to look at, and it is thoughtful about its subject matter. If you need a break from life, Dungeons of Hinterberg is here for your slaying needs.

At the end of the day, The Last Story is a decent RPG, but nothing to be excited about. A dull story and uninteresting characters mar a unique combat system and solid gameplay.

Dreamscaper has been in early access for about a year, and based on my time with it, I can say that time was well spent by Afterburner. They’ve created a well-balanced and engaging roguelike Action RPG that perfectly pairs with its social simulator mechanics. I continued to play long after I conquered Cassidy’s dreams and enjoyed every run, whether it was all the way to the end of the game or stupidly dying in the first level. This is a super impressive debut for the studio, and I hope that Afterburner is already working on its follow-up title! If Dreamscaper is any indication, we will be in for some sweet dreams ahead!

A beautiful, chaotic adventure, Dragon's Crown Pro is worth a go if you've never played the original.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning was clearly a labor of love from creative people with the ways and means to bring their ideas to fruition, and it shows.

Easily the best domestic RPG on the PSP to date. The game itself is incredibly unique and fun to play. The portability is both a blessing and a curse, allowing one of the PSOne classics to be played on the go, but limiting you to a four inch screen.

A Telltale-esque title set in suburban America that hints at maturity.

If you've played Trails FC, there's a good chance you're already waist-deep in SC, and so my review isn't going to sway you one way or another. For those who haven't yet taken the plunge, I cannot stress enough that SC is a direct sequel that takes place immediately following the ending of the first game, so I recommend beating FC first.

Ys: The Oath in Felghana is a fun game, and it's worth the purchase for any Ys fan, if simply for the included soundtrack.

Dicey Dungeons certainly offers a unique experience to turn-based, deck-building titles. Unfortunately, the inclusion of dice can both excite and frustrate, as no amount of planning can prepare one for each contingency one might encounter or a poor run of luck. The unique playstyles keep the game fresh, the sheer quantity of items one might accrue add to the customization. If I've got the itch to throw dice, I can see myself dusting off Dicey Dungeons before anything else, but I think my luck's run dry for the time being.

A documentary in game form that allows the player to experience historical events authentically in a way no film could.

As a game that has been in development for well over seven years, my expectations for Granblue Fantasy: Relink have been sky-high. With only a handful of very minor flaws, the game has dramatically proven itself worth the wait. While combat, setpieces, and character customization triumph, the game also has incredibly tight pacing. While Final Fantasy XVI put five or so hours of side questing and downtime between pivotal moments and spectacular boss fights, Granblue Fantasy: Relink cuts all the fat and focuses on delivering a fast, dramatic, and exciting experience. With myriad mechanics, setpieces, character variety, and fantastic combat, the game is the perfect blend of modern action RPGs while avoiding the formula. Granblue Fantasy: Relink has, without a doubt, surpassed my lofty expectations and set a new bar for character action RPGs. I cannot wait to lose a couple hundred hours of my life to the post-game scenario with friends.

I was happy to have the chance to revisit Ys SEVEN with fresh eyes. Falcom and XSEED have pulled off an excellent port that runs like a dream even on my (far-)below spec laptop. As far as Ys titles available on PC, we're spoiled for choice, and this is an especially fine one to revisit.

If you've never played Lunar before and you own a PSP, this is your chance to play a classic.

It's better than the original Atelier Rorona, but I'd still rather be playing any other Atelier game.

Lies of P certainly evokes the likenesses of the game we all know it is trying to emulate — that’s right, Nightmare Creatures 2 (j/k, it’s Dark Souls). However, it is polarizing to me; it marks a step backward in several ways from the design of its inspiration. However, it also offers a few alternative modes of stepping forward from those designs, such as robust weapon adjustments, streamlined cosmetic options, and a fun new skill tree in Quartz upgrades. It also offers a more obvious central story, one that does a good job of recognizing its ancestry while gracefully appropriating it for the present cultural moment. It is just a bummer that, from a gameplay standpoint, Lies of P fails to remember where it came from.