The Longest 5 Minutes isn’t really the most innovative RPG, despite its presentation, but it’s a short and fun game to play through. You may not be surprised by the plot or challenged by the gameplay, but for genre fans, it’s still worth the playthrough just to see how the unusual situation of a hero losing his memories at the end of the game (rather than the start) is handled.

All in all, Final Fantasy XV Windows Edition is the best console-to-pc port that Square Enix has produced to date. On top of that, the Royal Edition is the best version of Final Fantasy XV – so far, and even if only just. The route taken to get here has been a bumpy one, needlessly long with and perhaps without the most efficient direction, but the journey here has left us at a better place than we were at starting out.

Not only did the uninspired (and downright boring) maps dull my senses, but the glacier pacing left me fighting the urge to take multiple breaks during my coverage. I hate to say it, but you should stay far away from this one - there is very little that is redeeming about The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2.

The Alliance Alive tries to make improvements on its predecessor, but only to a certain level of success. It still gets bogged down by a somewhat repetitive gameplay loop, and the expanded story focus is merely adequate. However, the game can be comforting if you are longing for an RPG that feels like the ones of the days past.

With the sheer amount of meticulous effort Level-5 has put into the overall experience, this is easily one of the most enjoyable RPGs I have had the pleasure of playing in years. I couldn’t shake this undeniably genuine feeling of tingly nostalgia that washed over me whenever I was playing the game. Whether you are a fan of traditional adventures or just looking for something downright refreshing, it’s quite possible Ni no Kuni II will have the same overwhelmingly positive effect on you as it did on me.

That energetic feeling in the first game of swinging around buildings and taking out Titans with a well-placed strike is still incredibly satisfying. Complemented by a solid PC port, and you have yet another highly entertaining licensed product by Omega Force well worth checking out. This is how a sequel should be treated.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance satisfies that itch if you are looking for something a little different than typical western high fantasy or Japanese style RPGs. It's rough around the edges and some narrative & mechanical quirks don't always hit their mark, but it's still an enjoyable experience if you can put up with a little bit of uneveness.

Yakuza 6: The Song of Life has an incredibly bittersweet ending, and the narrative twists and turns that brought me there, left me feeling satisfied with the close of Kazuma Kiryu’s story.

Emotional experiences like this are why art exists. Art is subjective and sometimes we love a piece of art not because it is objectively the best, but because it has resonated with us in a way we could have never predicted. I might have said farewell to them, but Max and Chloe will stay with me for years to come, and I’m cautious but excited to see where the series will go now that it has said farewell to Arcadia Bay.

I would fully recommend Subsurface Circular to anyone that enjoys purely narrative games. It’s a short game, but one that gives you a fully realized world in its short playtime. The storytelling method is a bit unconventional and is done well when other games could have easily made it too long. It’s a perfect title for a rainy afternoon play, or for a breather in between longer adventures.

Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet offers a fresh formula that gives the license a much-needed shot in the arm thanks to its deep customization and enjoyable gameplay elements. Not only that, but Gun Gale Online (the VR MMORPG where the game takes place) presents a far more interesting framework thanks to its sci-fi setting and gun-heavy focus, rather than the fantasy backdrop the property was precedently known for.

While I appreciate their attempt to modernize the experience, this one doesn't seem so much as a love letter to the fans as much as an attempt to fix what wasn't broken. It won’t do anything to hurt a person’s enjoyment of the original, especially my own, but it’s altogether a lackluster effort for something that could have been so much more. In the end, you may be better off investing in the SNES Classic and trying it out that way instead.

Cold Steel II is the latest game of the overarching Kiseki series of games that been localized for western audiences so the future from here on is a little bit murky. We know that the first two games are getting PS4 re-releases in Japan in the coming months, but details concerning the future of the series for the west are sparse at best. We’re hopeful this isn’t the last time we’ll be able to write about the series for the western audience and that fans who invest into the games, on any platform, will be able to see the story continued someday soon.

I’m conflicted about Dissidia Final Fantasy NT because I think it looks fantastic and makes good on its total makeover to a thrilling 3vs3 fighting game. Each character is different enough to make them all worth checking out. My problems with its netcode is a hard thing to overcome though; some characters that have strict timings on their mechanics are almost impossible to fully utilize online; these include Sephiroth’s dash cancels, Squall’s trigger on his bravery attacks, Jecht’s very brief window to parry attacks, and so forth. Plus, there’s just not much else to it if you’re not planning to play it online with others a lot. Offline NT fighters can go through its slim excuse for a story and then play Gauntlet endlessly to unlock more treasure and gil to buy more things from the shop I suppose.

The Switch version of Dragon Quest Builders feels like the definitive version of the game. It blends the better graphics and performance of the PlayStation 4 version of the title with the portability of the Vita version, offering players the ability to play how they want, when they want. Most games on Switch I prefer mostly playing in Handheld instead of TV mode, but for Builders I enjoyed playing in both modes. Dragon Quest Builders is a great spin-off to the iconic series… if you haven't given this game a chance, the Switch is the best way to do so.

Final Fantasy XII's PC version is a good port of an excellent game. It's not remarkably different from the Playstation 4 version of the game, and the capability to play at a higher framerate is the one big noteworthy improvement. It's not a drastically better experience on PC, but it's a remarkably faithful and relatively bug-free one. It's still a Playstation 2 game at its core, and no amount of cranked up anti-aliasing will ever belie that truth, but it's still a visually distinct game with great art direction and a stellar localization. We definitely suggest PC gamers check out this remaster of a great classic.

Whether or not Radiant Historia needed a re-release, and even if the new story content is a bit superfluous, the core of the game is as wonderful as it was before. Several quality-of-life tweaks simply make a good game better, and whether you're playing for the first time or just want to revisit a favorite, Perfect Chronology is worth picking up.

I’m not the biggest fan of games that punish you for the smallest mistake, but in spite of that, I really enjoyed my time with Darkest Dungeon. The game rarely feels unfair, and proper preparations and knowledge of what you’re getting into will generally get you through to the end safely. While the loop of entering dungeons and slowly building up resources and character levels might seem repetitive on paper, it’s really more addicting, as you eventually gain parties strong enough to defeat bosses and delve into the Darkest Dungeon itself. Its addition to the Switch library is a great boon, and I highly recommend it there—however, this difficult RPG is worth the price of admission on any platform.

Elex is a hard game to genuinely recommend, it does so many important things to only an acceptable level or worse. It's a game that's carried based on the strength of its quest design, or more pessimistically, one that's let down by a general lack of polish and uninteresting combat. It feels like a nice refreshing counterpart to some modern rpgs that treat their quest lists more like chores, but as a complete package, it falls disappointingly short.

To say this remake is worthy of its namesake would be to sell it short - it's a tremendous achievement that goes well beyond expectations. While I am not a fan of every artistic decision Bluepoint has made, overall the essence has been preserved brilliantly.

Monster Hunter: World re-invents and re-imagines many of the series' core tenets while also maintaining the ideas that made earlier entries in the series great.

Zwei: The Arges Adventure is sadly not a very interesting game, but I give XSEED huge props for their dedication in finally bringing the title over to English players. At less than 20 hours in length for the main story, it's a title that might be worth checking out as a sort of curious novelty, but it's probably not going to leave any lasting impression.

Thanks to its whimsical soundtrack, interesting script, enjoyable combat system (even if most of its copied from I Am Setsuna), there’s plenty of aspects found in Lost Sphear that I fell in love with. Whether you’re a seasoned veteran of the genre or a newcomer looking for something accessible, you should give this one a try. Just expect nothing mind-blowing.

Outside of the unorthodox pairing of gameplay and presentation, Battle Chasers: Nightwar isn't that remarkable of a game on paper. Many of the mechanics are largely borrowed from other games and the narrative merely exists to move the party from one dungeon to the next -- practical but not altogether captivating. That stated, Nightwar is a game that ends up slightly more than the sum of its components, partially due to the novelty of the package as a whole, and (admittedly) somewhat due to the nostalgia of the turn-based rpg at its core.

VA-11 HALL-A is inherently flawed yet it's still a wonderful personal cyberpunk tale. Even with the writing being lackluster at times, I find its cast to be pleasantly unforgettable. I often think about them, Glitch City, and my dreams of the future living through its soundtrack as I listen to it outside of the game. It was worth diving in and have a fascinating peek into that view. And I'd love to return to it anytime.

Before the Storm tackles its themes with grace and provides an amazing exploration of female friendships and relationships with an emotional depth that is rare to come across. Many moments are heart-wrenching and in line with the primary thing that made the original so widely beloved: the emotional, real, and relatable experiences of its characters. Just like the original, it has its good share of flaws; but also just like the original, there are moments and characters so human that you can’t help but connect with them on a deeply personal level. Just like real people, Before the Storm’s final episode is a flawed but at times beautiful thing. Overall, even though I have a stronger personal connection to the first season, I dare say Before the Storm is the better of the two and it’s absolutely worth playing.

If you can manage the noticeable gameplay design flaws and the eyesore that is the user interface, Romancing SaGa 2 is still an excellent experience culminating in a highly eccentric entry for the series. Thanks to its sheer density of content, I would still recommend giving this one a try, regardless of the platform you go with.

With all the improvements made to this enhanced re-release, it almost feels as if the Vita version of Tokyo Xanadu can be considered a beta version. Even if you have already played the Vita version, all the new additions and readjusted gameplay provide a completely fresh and definitive experience for the game. If this is your first time playing Tokyo Xanadu, I would recommend picking up the PlayStation 4 version. However, Vita players must ask themselves if the battle tweaks and story additions are worth a second purchase.