To put it simply, I just didn’t have a good time with God of War Sons of Sparta. This game stepped into an overly crowded space, brought nothing new or interesting to the table, and has this weird, corporate, “how do you do fellow kids” energy with its faux-retro trimmings that don’t have any historical verisimilitude. Sauceless combat, a do-nothing story, and striking lack of personality don’t do any favors to a novel premise and quality voice acting that gave an initially promising first impression. A God of War Metroidvania could have been a productive and exciting use of the IP, especially in a post-Silksong world, but Sons of Sparta doesn’t have a fraction of that juice.

MindsEye isn’t a “so bad it’s good” situation. It’s just bad in a mundane, uninteresting way. It’s a half-baked idea built out with shallow writing, vapid gameplay, and bland everything else. Even the bugs aren’t funny enough to be memorable. The most entertaining part of all this is the vague allusion to sabotage the leadership at Build a Rocket Boy seems to be leaning on. Will we eventually learn exactly who sabotaged what part of this pile of decaying, raw beef of a video game to the extent of holding it back from greatness? Or were we simply seeing desperate executives throwing darts at the Wheel of Avoiding Accountability? Who can say? By the time an answer may emerge we’ll probably all forget MindsEye existed. We don’t really have bargain bins anymore, after all.

To put it simply, if this was one of those retro re-releases that are basically fancy emulators with additional screen filters and save states, maybe online play as a treat, Star Wars: Episode 1: Jedi Power Battles (whew) probably would’ve been alright. Instead, we have this bizarre Frankenmaster that looks and sounds like the end result of someone playing with a PlayStation emulator for the first time and pushing the sliders all the way up. Preservation is important, even for games that aren’t “classics.” This isn't the preservation you've been looking for.

Eldritch Realms adds an impressive number of new ways to think about Age of Wonders 4, and the hero units and realm challenges are among the strategy game’s best so far. Sure, it’s not another Empires and Ashes-level expansion, but it’s pretty darn close.

If you're looking for a deep, well-rounded driving simulator with a career mode, then Taxi Life is going to fall short on all accounts. There are a variety of similar titles available that do everything that Taxi Life offers and do so much more competently. Taxi Life can look pretty at times, but it's a big ask to overlook its many bugs and short-comings. Driving a taxi around a city isn't the most interesting idea to begin with, so Taxi Life needed to get all the details right, and unfortunately it doesn't come close to doing so.

As a hub for video game preservation, Digital Eclipse's latest is fine. It does the absolute minimum and not a bit more. As a piece of history, though, it’s baffling, incomplete, and rushed. I can’t help but think that perhaps the Jeff Minter story that Digital Eclipse wanted to tell proved too unwieldy and maybe too expensive to fit into this release, and what we end up with is this pared down version. Even that doesn't explain the lack of effort to actually tell a story and put any of Minter's life and work in worthwhile context.

This is an awful lot of complaining, but once I stockpiled enough stuff, I did enjoy actually building with it. Return to Moria makes putting things together simple and enjoyable, as long as you meet a few basic requirements. Free Range uses logic in the best possible ways. It’s important if you’re building something top-heavy that would and should collapse without the right supports. It’s out the window completely for other things. Wanna stick a tiny wooden platform in a sheer stone wall so you can climb around? Do it! Does it make physical sense? No! But it does make exploring and building more fun.

I knew the writing was on the wall when Everybody 1-2 Switch! was announced in the same month that it was released, with little fanfare from Nintendo. Everybody 1-2 Switch! is fun in the same way that watching a bad movie is fun. If you’ve got some good friends together and everyone’s in a silly mood, you might have a good time throwing on Everybody 1-2 Switch and having a laugh at the absurdity of it all. But after about 20 minutes of this, most sensible people will ask you to close the game and launch Mario Kart, Mario Party, or even Switch Sports before they sink more of their precious time into Everybody 1-2 Switch!

It is a treat to get to experience Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales on PC, whether it’s for the first time or a revisit. Nixxes does a superb job at making it a joy on PC, and the game’s holiday themes make it the perfect game to get you in the spirit. Not only did it renew my excitement for the future of this franchise, but for more PlayStation games to get PC ports down the road.

If you’ve never played the original Last of Us, I would argue this is the version worth playing. The upgrades over the original are quite numerous. From the upgraded visuals and impeccable work done on lighting and shadows, to the expansion of accessibility options and even new ones over The Last of Us Part 2, and finally a multitude of subtle gameplay improvements that make the whole experience all the more enjoyable, this is a fully upgraded package. I won’t say every “improvement” is actually an improvement or even necessary, but the sheer amount of polish added to this version of the game likely ensures I will never go back to The Last of Us Remastered over Part 1, given the choice. [Impressions]

The latest installment of Madden NFL makes an attempt to treat the passing of the titular football coach last year with reverence, but EA has instead missed the mark in ways that highlight the compounding systemic problems with the game franchise and the troubling nature of the company's stranglehold on NFL simulation.

Those who enjoyed and have missed the controller-throwing fury of Cuphead will be happy with the Delicious Last Course. It's a wholesome story, features more of the vintage art style that made the original so memorable, and the addition of Ms. Chalice even makes the base game retroactively more accessible.

For long-time Monster Hunter players, it’s always worth picking up the expansions, especially in the case of Sunbreak. For those looking to get into Monster Hunter for the first time, treat Sunbreak like dessert: it’s there for you once you finish your meal. But whether you’ve been at the banquet for a long time or just getting your first plate, you can’t go wrong with Sunbreak, it’s a stellar addition to an already excellent experience.

A game with a dedicated ‘pull your dick out’ keybinding in 2022 should be way more clever than this. No amount of John St. John voice-over work or copyright-dodging music jingles can cover up the odor emanating from this pile. 4/10 BBQ’d dead dogs.

There are so many games out there that do what Sifu does only better. Honestly, if you want a punishing grind where your efforts will actually pay off you’re probably better off just taking a Kung-Fu class in real life.

God of War already played well and looked great on the PS4, and as expected it’s even better when unleashed on PC.

Overall, Monster Hunter Rise on PC is another perfect example of why the series belongs on computer. It offers all the excellent experiences found on the Nintendo Switch, albeit with improved visuals, better resolution, a myriad of performance options, and greater controller support. Hopefully there comes a day when PC players get to experience a Monster Hunter title at the same time as console players, because the series has shown that it thrives on PC, with a playerbase ready to dive into it with their whole hearts. For those that have been biding their time, I’m pleased to say that Monster Hunter Rise on PC has been well worth the wait.

The Death Stranding Director’s Cut adds enough new tools and toys for players to utilize to make the experience worth replaying for those diehard fans. And for those that were unsure about getting in, the shuffling and redistribution of tools ensures that the early game is more approachable, while still retaining the sense of scale and progression offered at launch. The other features, like the firing range, racing track, and new location elevate an already rich experience. So collect your order and tie up your laces, because you’ll want to walk another 500 miles or more to experience what’s on offer here.

If you’ve already played through what the core game has to offer, Iki Island is a reasonably priced expansion (as is the PS5 upgrade). I do wish it had just a little bit more to offer, but I will take it over nothing. If you loved what this game already had to offer, how could you turn down more of it?

If Akiba's Trip: Hellbound & Debriefed catches you having too much fun, be prepared to have that stripped from you like a finely quaffed set of Shadow Soul clothes. This game is a constant chore to enjoy and should be reserved for the folks that really want to see where the series began.

As somebody who wasn't into the Nier lore going into this review, I'm fully invested now. That's the magic that Nier Replicant works and, even with its faults, it's a treat for both fans and newcomers.

The marketing materials for R.B.I. Baseball 21 makes some bold claims that the end product fails to deliver on. While it does carry the full MLB and players union license, it is a lesser representation of the game of baseball than some of its more-arcadey rivals. It touts features of AAA sports games, yet trips over its own cleats when asked to make a clutch play. The lack of online play will make it a non-starter for many and the aggressively bad animations will disqualify it for anyone hoping for a semi-serious game of baseball. This mess could be cleaned up, but players will need to wait for next year’s outing to find out.

While some additions to the old formula provide value, particularly the ability to leap onto buildings to shave time on fares and online leaderboards, falling short on all the other parts of the experience drags the entire game down. The lack of Crazy Box-style minigames further reduces any replay value. Crazy Taxi succeeded by offering players the feeling of chaos and excitement, either through its then-novel gameplay mechanics or its untouchable sense of style. Taxi Chaos brings neither to the table and offers only minimal appeal to folks who might have missed all the hoopla twenty years ago. 3/10 beaded seat covers.

As is, Airplane Mode doesn’t make it off the runway. I’d rather fly Spirit.

It’s not just the bugs and glitches that make Remothered: Broken Porcelain a bad game. It’s the core designs. It’s how these systems function, or rather fail to function. It’s how the story is blasted out in chunks of exposition. There’s a lack of finesse to the entire experience. No number of patches can fix these problems. Overall, even fans of the previous title may find it difficult to get through what's on offer here.

Unless you’re a mad fan of Vampire: The Masquerade, and need to absorb every piece of literature about the universe, this will be a disappointing experience. While the artwork is rich and the music moody, the writing – the game’s backbone and its entire selling point – is weak. Even fans will likely find this a shallow read where decisions rarely feel like they have any significant weight. Give this one a miss.

Bounty Battle is one of the coolest ideas for a game I've seen in some time, which is partly why I feel like part of my soul has been crushed. This game is an absolute mess. It's presentation is terrible, the character models are laughable, the systems are confusing, and it made me wonder half the time if my PC was broken. Given the rich roster of wonderful indie characters, this should have been a contender. Instead, this fighter's career is over before the bell even rang.

Now I'm wondering what anybody saw in the original in the first place. The controls and the combat are bad. The story elements are dull. The load times are excruciatingly long and frequent. And visually, it doesn't look very polished, which makes me wonder how this is a remaster. The menus, especially, are an eyesore to look at with giant glaring fonts and ugly textures. The horrible online experience isn't just the icing on the cake, it's like someone took a cake and threw it in a blender without putting the lid on. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered is a lot of things, but a classic is not one of them.

As I spent my time with the PC version of the game, I’d like to note that EA has once again failed to utilize any advantages provided by the platform to improve the game, outside of support for higher refresh rates. There is still loads of lag and unresponsiveness in menus and during game situations that make no sense. I experienced stuttering at random times across all modes, including hitching during active kick meters or when trying to complete passes. Sometimes, these hitches corresponded to dropped frames and other times not. There still remains loads of visual stutter every time the game swaps between what you control and between-play camera cuts, even when everything is running at 144Hz.

I'm really wishing I had opted to play on PlayStation 4, but I would have had to wait longer for code to review, and there is no co-op mode to play with on PS4. The Switch version got several console-specific modes, including Assist Mode, three-player co-op, touchscreen support, and single Joy-Con play. Why Metronomik opted to reward the system least capable of running the game smoothly with additional content like this is beyond me, but I wish all systems supported three-player co-op to avoid these issues.

There's a massive amount of work to be done here before I’d ever consider Hyper Scape a go-to over other options in the space.

I will give Kill It With Fire credit for running smoothly on my PC and being a bug-free (groan) experience from the start to finish of its uncommonly short run time. The one fear-inducing music cue it uses repeatedly was worth a half-chuckle the first time I heard it, so I will give credit there. I don’t feel like there is anything here I can recommend to players unless they are deathly afraid of spiders or want to fake scream for a livestream show or two. The spiders can’t even hurt you, so the stakes here are literally zero for those not already stricken with bug phobia.

Players who may have passed on the PS4 release in anticipation of Death Stranding coming to PC will not be disappointed. The game ran great during my preview experience, and features keyboard and mouse support. In a world that seems increasingly chaotic and apocalyptic, Death Stranding can provide players with a world that is actually trying to repair itself.

Ultimately, there are better options out there for those itching for a hunting game fix. Hunting Simulator 2 earns points for its selection of licensed firearms and novel hunting companion system, but little else. The whole experience feels unfinished and the lack of attention to detail works to undermine the genuinely good traits it has. 4/10 sad duck calls.

So much of Disintegration is just puzzling. It manages to eke out a space in a hybrid genre but never manages to capitalize on this newfound territory. It offers squad upgrades and control over their movement as a group but fails to let you select who to take with you on a mission or give you control over individual units. You’re given a flying hovercraft but you’re constantly butting up against invisible walls and fences one inch higher than you can fly. It’s unfortunate when a game is bad and broken, but it’s a damn shame when a game is forgettable. Disintegration does not feel up to scratch for a game releasing in 2020.

If nothing else, Aftermath is a must-play for both newer fans of the modern Mortal Kombat narrative and old-school fans who enjoyed the 1995 Mortal Kombat movie. While there have been offshoot projects like the Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge movie that released earlier this year, Aftermath's story shows once again that there are no better tellers of the Mortal Kombat lore than the NetherRealm team themselves.

Unfortunately, because the pace feels so plodding and this beat 'em up formula doesn't mix particularly well with RPG-style combat, it's hard to recommend coming back for more. I like Treachery in Beatdown City's concept, but it's not something that really worked for me in practice. You can't always mix peanut butter with chocolate and end up with something good.

For those who were disappointed by Ultimate Alliance 3's first few DLC offerings, Shadow of Doom has some more meat to it and should be more of what true believers are looking for.

Warlander is a disappointing experience that fails to capture the pleasures of a roguelike game. The combat is unpolished and sluggish and it is rife with poor animations and unfinished assets and elements. Outside of the dismemberment, there’s little here worth seeing.

Even the true fans will retreat to YouTube to watch the cutscenes, because there's nothing to entice players here. Re Mind is a dud and a total disappointment for any KH fan.

WWE 2K20 closely aligns with much of the current WWE onscreen product. It features the most promising roster in history, yet manages to squander it with incompetence, all while expecting fans to lap it up like they always do.

Believe me when I say Terminal Reality's three-volume Blair Witch series is a better use of your time. Or better yet, watch the original found footage classic The Blair Witch Project if you haven't already seen it. It may be hokey, but it's culturally significant – and you may actually walk away a bit shaken.

Madden NFL 20 is the worst major sports league video game out there. Despite some despicable microtransaction design, NBA 2K is an exponentially better representation of its real-life counterpart and has an ever-improving Franchise mode that offers real depth and year-over-year growth. MLB: The Show is the blueprint of excellence for which other sports titles should be judged. Save your money for a series that still respects its fans. 4/10 butt fumbles.

Despite its deceptively intriguing prologue, Vane quickly goes from a journey of discovery to a laborious chore, mainly due to the abundance of technical issues and a lack of a decent save system.

Boobs Saga is a confusing mess of poor controls, bad voice acting, terrible combat, and awful English text and dialogue. It's a shame, because it seems otherwise it could shape up to be a serviceable lewd adventure. [Early Access Score = 40]

Insomniac’s first DLC outing for Marvel’s Spider-Man proves to be a worthy one. While it doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel, it adds more activities for players to dive into and features a fully fleshed out story with some pretty memorable characters. The best thing The Heist has going for it is that it gets to build on top of the spectacular foundation laid with the original game.

A new journey in the Life is Strange universe has begun, but so far, it's not one I'm particularly enjoying.

Sniper Rust VR is a collection of things that make for an unentertaining experience, but a poor shooting experience is the final straw.

This is a bad game. It’s not worth $20 and, in my opinion, not worth $5, unless you’re the kind of person that would get a kick out of Paris Hilton slut jokes in 2018 and can’t get enough lazy, casual racism.

To offer a mobile iteration that has even less value than the regular version of the game feels like a nonsensical move.

Sadly, while the original Secret of Mana was by no means a flawless experience, the remake's attempt to improve upon the formula has resulted in a game that's markedly inferior by comparison.

With Xenoblade Chronicles 2, every item down even the darkest corners of my inventory has a purpose. It can feel overwhelming at times and you'll surely pull your hair out trying to decide what to sell, if anything, but hardcore players will be rewarded kindly if they want to spend the time. More casual players will find some fun too, but won't be punished if they decide to obsess over every little detail.

"Like Dark Souls" has become a frequent and often eyerolling-inducing comparison, albeit with good reason. Love it or hate it, Dark Souls has informed countless games since it burst onto the scene in a spray of blood and smashed controllers. The Surge excels by knowing when to take cues from the king of the genre, and when to turn left where its predecessors turned right. I'm over a dozen hours in, and I'll happily play dozens more.

Prey is messing with my head - in a good way. All the elements of a great game are there, while driving me mad with its complexity.

To call Nioh a copycat would be doing it a disservice. Combat is tight and layered with options, levels are gorgeously rendered and ooze atmosphere, and the story is entertaining enough to keep me interested yet can still be set aside when I'm more interested in perfecting my ki pulses.

Peel away impressive visuals, and you're left with a game that seemingly holds itself together with haphazardly-placed thin threads. Being that it's an open world extreme sports game, you're encouraged to explore around the mountains, detecting drop zones and finding new challenges to participate in.

All early indications are Dishonored 2 holds up to the high bar of its predecessor, and while it offers a bit more replayability with Emily and Corvo and some new game mechanics, it isn't as much of an advancement as it is a return to a formula that continues to work incredibly well for the series.

WWE 2K17's expansive game systems represent possibly the most substantial update to the franchise in years. Most of the changes are small, but they add up to the most fun I've had with a WWE game in years.

While the main focus of the story isn’t on how badass Batman is, Telltale has done a great job with the combat sequences, and the story-driven choices that are littered throughout the narrative really help to push the character forward.

Unsurprisingly, Mutants in Manhattan continues the time-honored tradition of licensed games being a sub-par, disappointing representation of a popular franchise.

A golf game developed by some of the people who brought us Burnout seemed like a great idea on paper, but it was poorly executed as globetrotting means nothing in this game, it isn’t very well optimized on PC, and its repetitive gameplay can get old real fast.

I ultimately concluded that it's not meant to be that deep. It's just a boring game.

Charging an admission fee for what is essentially an explainer reel with jumbled tidbits of mundane unfinished game ideas is ludicrous, even in the name of thinking outside the box in terms of game design. Play The Stanley Parable instead.

The graphics are two console generations old, it suffers bad level design, and missions are uninspiring throughout all stages. What makes this whole experience sting even more is the fact that this bad game has so many obvious issues, that even getting through it for the sake of a review was difficult.

The gameplay is boring, the landmarks and scenery are mediocre, and the story is almost nonexistent. Submerged is a rapidly sinking ship that never even left the harbor.

Hatred is a game that basks in controversy for the sake of controversy, while doing nothing to keep the curious interested in seeing it through.

Escape Dead Island disappoints on multiple levels, from its lackluster gameplay, to its awful storytelling.

I disliked Assassin's Creed Rogue on almost every level, from its numerous game-breaking bugs, to its terrible free-running, and (worst of all) its ruined assassination system. Not even the plot, which fills in the gap between Black Flag and Assassin's Creed 3 while recounting the fall of the North American Brotherhood, is very satisfying.

With NBA Live 15, EA Sports makes minimal progress at best, but can't seem to find a solid enough identity for its hoops sim. The gameplay is all over the place, the modes don't show enough improvement, and the visual splendor is dulled over by commentators who feel like they want to be somewhere else.

Rambo: The Video Game just disappoints, over and over. There are no new power-ups or twists to keep you interested, no memorable boss fights, and no touches that fans of the film will go "ooh" over. The team at Reef could've done a lot more with this, something along the lines of what Sega did with its arcade Rambo game. Instead, they took the easy way out. Go watch the movies instead. All of the thrill, none of the pain, Johnny.

With problematic detection issues, questionable design choices, and an overwrought presentation, Kinect Sports Rivals fails to be the showcase for Kinect it should be. Xbox One's new camera may be next-generation, but you'll be hard-pressed to see that in Rivals.

Ultimately, Battle of Z offers Dragon Ball Z fans more of the same: another chance at seeing their favorite characters pummel each other. However, without a real fighting engine to support the game, hardcore fans haven't just played this before, they've probably already played something better.

Given its feature film length, one can't help but wonder if the game would've been better served in that format. While there are some interesting puzzles, the overall lack of polish makes it more frustrating than fun to play through. Like the shadows that inspire the game, Contrast just doesn't have much substance.

With its shallow gameplay, lazy design, and unfunny writing, I can only hope that Twisted Pixel intentionally set out to create a bad game--one that could be celebrated in the way that terrible films can. If so, LocoCycle is a huge success; it is miserable.

It doesn't take long, however, to realize that Sonic Team was inspired by Galaxy on a cosmetic level only. Lost World fails to execute on the gameplay afforded by circular worlds. In fact, in nearly every aspect of its design, it's evident that Sonic Team has never asked the crucial question: "why?"

Meaningless microgames water down the package considerably. Instead of 80 plus games, many of which don't use the GamePad at all, Wii Party U would have been better served focused on what makes Nintendo's new home console unique. Of course, that kind of creative decision would have gone against what the real goal of Wii Party U is: to sell more Wii Remotes.