Defender's Quest is a triumphant blending of RPG and tower defense and should provide plenty of entertainment for fans of both genres. Though the controls may not be ideally suited to the genre, Level Up Labs has done a nice job bringing players steadily to the game and offers an impressive level of control that will appeal to the hardcore and casual player alike. Addictive gameplay and entertaining writing makes for a great experience all around.

Monster Hunter: World absolutely stands out as an astonishing, deep, compelling hunting experience that can keep most gamers entertained for dozens, if not hundreds, of hours. The aforementioned loop of "hunt, upgrade, repeat," works here better than ever before. Capcom has fine-tuned this series for over a decade, and their hard work pays off with this release. Some may have worried that with the recent release of Monster Hunter clones that others may have discovered ways to improve on this formula and take over the genre. Yet, Monster Hunter: World proves that Capcom is still king of this jungle. Long live the king!

Plenty of experimental RPGs failed miserably in the attempt, but Radiant Historia is one of the success stories. It held my interest just as well now as when I played it on the DS, and experiencing the new content was quite enjoyable. Hopefully the audience it didn't quite find in its initial release learns about it now, particularly the many outside North America who can now experience it without importing, and I give Atlus kudos for another top-notch title brought out of Japan.

There's certainly an argument that The Longest 5 Minutes could be considered more of an interactive visual novel than an RPG, but it's a good one. Though the gameplay is very basic, the events and dungeon-crawling sections do enough to convey the actual adventure, and it ties in nicely with the events of the final battle. The game plays to its strengths and mitigates its weaknesses well, providing an enjoyable experience that feels more involving as the timer ticks along.

For those planning to pick up one of the versions of Tokyo Xanadu, eX+ would be the recommended one for the extra event scenes and character interactions that come with it. Its improvements — including an assortment of minor quality of life upgrades — mean that it is the better release, but those who prefer to play on handheld shouldn't feel at all shortchanged by the original; the extras are more a bonus than anything and players are getting a substantial and greatly absorbing experience either way. Nihon Falcom's charm permeates throughout and its incredibly easy to get attached to Morimiya City and its residents.

For those looking to get into cRPGs, and even for those just searching for a great RPG, Divinity: Original Sin II is heartily recommended. It has all the virtues that fans of the subgenre have extolled and wraps them up in a way that is much friendlier to newcomers than every other title I've tried. Combine that with fantastic writing, a highly engaging combat system, and great design, and you have another standout RPG in a year packed full of them.

River City: Rival Showdown isn't a strong or memorable title in this franchise, especially when compared to Tokyo Rumble, which is by far the more quality game. With the lack of direction, the difficulty spikes, and the time it takes to upgrade skills and equipment, Rival Showdown is an exercise in frustration more than anything else.

Mario + Rabbids is an incredibly welcome surprise. I assumed that a game starring Rabbids would become grating long before completion, but my fears turned out to be unsubstantiated. Beep-0 is a great lead character, and the Rabbids' hijinks are dialed back to a level that works. This is a fun take on a tactical RPG; the simplification of hit percentages worked especially well. The game isn't without fault — greater variety in characters and levels along with more meaningful customization would be welcome — but most of the issues are minor in comparison to how much fun the game is to play. Hopefully Mario + Rabbids marks the beginning of a new series and a sequel will take these ideas further.

It's quite possible that I would have been even more taken with this game had plenty of friends been in the area so that we could cooperatively slaughter the forces of evil. Even as a solo experience though, Dragon's Crown is a blast to play. Fiddling around with all of its inventory is sometimes bothersome but it never overshadows the entertaining thrill ride of smashing things to a bloody pulp. Whether it's this original or the enhanced one coming in 2018, anyone with an affinity for beat-em-ups mixed with RPGs who hasn't tried this should do so poste haste.

There are a lot of odds and ends one discovers over the course of the game, for better or worse. The game is packed with content, quite a bit of it extending beyond the main campaign's runtime. Capcom and Marvelous wanted to turn over a new leaf, and Monster Hunter Stories certainly is that, a departure from what has come before, it just wasn't enough of a departure for my taste. The franchise faithful will probably still feel at home here, but others may need to decide if they can stomach the guesswork combat system or rote mission structure before committing to this game.

XCOM 2 doesn't reinvent the wheel, which is a good thing. It takes the lion's share of the gameplay from the last game and embeds it into the new game's foundation, shifting around some pieces to support the new gameplay fixtures without really altering the heart of the experience. With new soldier classes, enemy types, mission objectives, an all-new base, and a story built on losing the invasion the last time around, the new game provides the same intense combat experience and resource management series veterans expect. It ups the ante in terms of difficulty, and the result is a nail-biting game of close calls and narrow victories. While this may turn off some, it provides an amazing feeling of victory when one finds the sweet spot between keeping troops alive and advancing the long-term narrative-driving projects.

It's been a fairly long wait for Boot Hill Bounties, but Experimental Gamer Studios has certainly done enough to resurrect interest in the Wild West RPG trilogy. The game marks a strong second title, and new players shouldn't be afraid of jumping straight in here — though checking out the previous title certainly wouldn't hurt. Signs are good that the developer will be able to make a fitting conclusion to the trilogy.

I was so excited for a Steven Universe RPG, but I wish the game had been delayed a bit longer so that many of the bugs could have been ironed out. There is potential for a great game that will make any player smile, it's just too bad the bugs overcame the final product in a way that sucked the fun out of it at times. This game has all the trappings of great humour and loveable characters, but it's hard to recommend at this time for fans and non-fans given the end result.

The overall depth of Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and how well it all ties together is astounding. Though higher expectations mean it is less of a stunning revelation than the first game, Monolith Soft has risen up tall to meet those expectations and delivered spectacularly in every area. 2017 has been one of the greatest years in RPG history; Xenoblade Chronicles 2 caps that off in mesmerising fashion by being one of the finest titles of the year.

There's no strong reason to go back and play the original version of Mario and Luigi with this one around, and I had about as much fun now as I did in 2003. The interface amenities are certainly a nice touch, Bowser's Minions is a very respectable addition, and having a beefed-up role for the Koopalings as minions is something I personally delighted in experiencing. It's certainly not going to convert anyone who never cared for this style of game, but what's here is a fun romp.

.hack//G.U. has remained one of my all-time favorite games for many years, and Last Recode is a wonderful way to reintroduce gamers to this terrific universe. Players both old and new will be able to find something to love about this classic ensemble of games, but for me, the most exciting aspect of Last Recode is a minor conversation players can have with the character Piros the 3rd at the end of Reconnection. As a graphics artist for CC Corp, Piros lets slip that a new project is already underway. While Last Recode is currently the best way for players to experience the world of .hack, the promise of a possible future for the long-absent franchise is the best gift of all.

Perhaps the best overview of Empyre is as a collection of theoretically good ideas that were never fleshed out, with a storyboard rather than a story, and a hodgepodge of gameplay mechanics rather than a coherent set of fun game systems. And that's unfortunate, because the game is full of unique and intriguing elements in its setting, overarching plot, and combat, and could have easily made for an excellent experience. But as is, it's not much more than a buggy proof-of-concept in need of serious refinements and overhauls of all its core components.

Nights of Azure 2 seems to follow a pattern with Gust in the past couple of years following its takeover from Koei Tecmo. Though the developer's output has certainly increased, it appears to have come at a cost. This is just the latest in a line of easily forgettable titles that bring some interesting ideas but have not been given enough to use them effectively.

Summon Night 6 is an odd game. As the fifteenth anniversary project for the series, the creators produced an experience that resembles a crossover title rather than a typical mainline game. There is an expectation that players will be excited by each chapter's reveal of characters from an earlier Summon Night game, but can a person have nostalgia for something that wasn't available to experience in the first place? Because of the multitude of characters incorporated, the deep connection with characters and the cute asides that made Summon Night 5 stand out are lost. Ultimately, Summon Night 6 is a visually impressive, mechanically solid strategy RPG, but the repetitive story beats, weak voice acting, and overflowing number of characters keep the experience from shining.

Etrian Odyssey V is very much what I expected it would be. That means it won't appeal to anyone who has never been interested in this series, but it continues to showcase impressive dungeons and a rewarding sense of exploration. The series hasn't lost its spark of well-realized inspiration, and that's all many need to hear. It certainly managed to ensnare me for the entirety of the experience.

I didn't really know what to expect going into Zwei, but for me, the game quickly became the best surprise of 2017. Fun, quick gameplay, cute characters, and a charming story and world all come together to create a terrific experience that hides its nearly ten year old age surprisingly well. It's not a lengthy game, clocking in at a little over twenty hours, but optional dungeons and a new game plus mode can extend that significantly. While the series doesn't have the same history as Ys and Trails, after playing through Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection, I would happily welcome further adventures through Granvallen.

While South Park: The Fractured But Whole improves on Stick of Truth in a lot of ways, the whole experience feels somehow less grand. Although the game is slightly longer, probably lasting most players 20-30 hours, it doesn't push the boundaries nearly as far as Stick of Truth, and the poor pacing towards the end of the game definitely detracts from the overall experience. That said, there are a huge number of highly memorable moments peppered throughout the game, and it's an experience South Park fans won't want to miss.

Although it won't go down as an especially memorable title, there's a lot of fun to be had with Fire Emblem Warriors. The interesting usage of all the aspects from the tactical RPG series certainly added to some freshness to the standard Musou formula, and it was great to see a lot of the characters given the high-definition treatment and the interactions between them are sure to please a lot of fans.

Golf Story is an easy recommendation for all early Switch adopters out there. Very solid gameplay is well backed up by plenty of humour and a lot of nicely varied entertainment. Though it can be argued that the game doesn't provide anything overly new in its implementation of the game, even those who aren't fans of the sport will find lots of fun throughout.

Battle Chasers: Nightwar is an amazing effort, if anything made more impressive by virtue of being a Kickstarter-funded indie game, and is a testament to what a dedicated and talented team can accomplish. It may not lead the pack in gripping narrative, but presents its comic book license in such visually and aurally impressive ways that other games would do well to pay attention. However, its true star is its deep combat system, which offers so many ways to tinker with and improve party efficiency that it just doesn't get old, provided players are up for a traditional turn-based JRPG designed by a western team. It's a game that shouldn't be missed by any fan of the genre, and is sure to attract a whole new wave of attention to its underlying license.

In a year full of JRPGs, God Wars still manages to be a standout. Following Kaguya's story through ancient Japan, dealing with warring factions and angry gods was a fun journey. I found it impressive that for such a lengthy game, the story pacing was well done and I never lost interest in what was happening. In fact, I found myself interested enough as the game progressed that I was researching the people, events, and gods depicted. The gameplay especially shined, with an incredible amount of customization and strategy that has been streamlined out of many console strategy RPGs. The Impurity system was a great addition and helped keep the strategy in this smaller scale game. It's certainly not without flaws, the soundtrack could have used more variety and the limited map size guaranteed that many allies went unused, but the strategy was top notch. Players looking for a mechanically deep strategy RPG with a unique backdrop will not be disappointed.

It's a game that has a lot of promise, but feels cheaply made. There's some great ideas that are overshadowed by gameplay elements that don't add anything meaningful to the overall experience. While I loved the overarching themes and the characters, those elements were outshined by boring, repetitive gameplay, with boring and repetitive tasks that felt directionless most of the time. I can only hope, if a sequel is made, that Gust refocuses on how they want to make the gameplay interesting, because as it stands Blue Reflection lacks meaningful gameplay that doesn't work well with the storytelling it is attempting to provide.

The list of things that I had yet to unlock after going through the campaign show that Absolver is intended to have some long legs. Unfortunately, during those first few hours it doesn't provide anywhere near enough reason to actually stick around. The single-player feels mostly meaningless and the few flashes of interesting aspects are quickly lost in the labyrinth that is Adal.