Despite its quirks and difficulties, Not a Hero is a spectacularly addictive game.

Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled is another exemplary update for a classic game that desperately needed refreshing after remaining somewhat dormant for several console generations.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect X is one of those “pure gameplay” roller coasters that offer you tons of value just in terms of how awesome it feels to press buttons and really dive into what you can do. If you like BlazBlue already, great! Pick your favorite (hopefully they’re here) and dive until you want to throw up from the excess. If you aren’t into BlazBlue, it doesn’t matter - if you just like dope combat systems in 2D action games, that’s what’s on the table here and in heaping piles. Even the roguelikey build-crafting stuff takes a backseat in terms of relevance once you get your first few upgrades. It’s really just all about Ragna the Bloodedge fighting ninjas with his demonic blood powers. And that’s plenty.

As an offline package, Nintendo Switch Sports is a hoot just for Bowling and Chambara alone. The other games are worth trying at least once. Volleyball might even grow on some people. Unfortunately, Badminton, Tennis, and Soccer lost steam with me after a while, but half a package that I'll return to again and again is certainly nothing to sneeze at. I hope this is a collection that will continue to grow, because I had forgotten what a crowd-pleaser the Wii Sports era was. It's good to have that spirit back.

While Infinity Ward might have played it a little too safe when it came to the competitive multiplayer mode, the improvements in the single-player campaign and Call of Duty: Zombies are substantial. The single-player campaign, in particular, hooked me, and I hope that future campaigns in the Call of Duty universe get the same care.

Open Roads is the quintessential Annapurna Interactive video game. There are prominent actors giving authentic performances in a story that’s beautifully written, there’s a unique approach to art direction, and the music is top-of-the-line. I didn’t vibe with all of the design decisions, but it’s impossible to walk away from Open Roads without feeling at least a little contemplative about your own life journey and relationships.

Company of Heroes 3 is a splendid and rewarding RTS game. Tense battles, brilliant map design, and streamlined unit management make it easily one of the best in the genre, with the Italian campaign acting as an exciting blueprint for the series’ future. If Relic wants to use Company of Heroes to tell serious and significant stories, though, the team needs to commit to actually doing that beyond just giving them a surface treatment.

Fuser definitely has a few rough patches, like the Battles multiplayer and the slow rate of XP growth. Plus, let's face it, we can't all be as good as Marc Rebillet, so there are some features that players won't be able to take full advantage of without sounding ridiculous. But, for pure musical fun, there are few games in 2020 better than Fuser.

The Disney Afternoon Collection may not have the consistency of Capcom's previous work with the Eclipse Engine, thanks to its library varying in quality. But it is just as reverent and breezy, and the addition of the Rewind feature helps ease the journey into the past. If you were a fan of even a few of these games, you owe it to yourself to see them presented so respectfully for a modern audience.

They say the Tetris Effect happens when you start seeing Tetris blocks everywhere, but I'm starting to see Insane Robots chips and circuitry wherever I go. Does that mean I'm addicted?

Sonic Mania is at once a blast from the past and a wormhole to Sonic's future, bypassing everything between it and the early '90s. Come for the callbacks, stay to get a firsthand look at what Sonic's custodians have in store for his future.

Bramble: The Mountain King is as gorgeous as it is horrifying, with surprises lurking around every corner. The game excels at building tension and suspense while maintaining visual splendor throughout. Although the game isn’t particularly long–I rolled credits around 7 hours–it is an experience that horror game enthusiasts will not want to miss.

An excellent racer that’s every bit worth picking up to add to your arsenal of Nintendo Switch games. There are plenty of tracks, vehicles, and reasons to keep coming back for more. But the one you can’t ignore is the greatest of all: The speed. It may not be the racing game you asked for on the Switch, but it’s the racing game you didn’t know you needed.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales will appeal to loads of gamers and I suspect it will be a hit for PlayStation owners this holiday season. While there isn’t as much to do this time around and what is included is mostly recycled, the asking price is lower than normal. Being Spider-Man is still as fun as it was in 2018 (and potentially more fun now at 60Hz) and Miles Morales is a character that is more compelling than Peter Parker. Should the few technical hiccups get sorted out, this will be a solid inclusion for any game library. Anyone grabbing a PS5 at launch would do well to grab a copy.

It may be too bogged down in its own story and look slightly dated, but the pure puzzle mechanics still work both in and out of the courtroom, and are bolstered by the crossing of ideas. It's more than the sum of its parts, and as a result is a nice treat.

Look at Wild Card Football as a late-round NFL draft pick that dramatically overachieves on the field. People likely didn't expect much from it, but what they have now is a pleasant surprise.

This colorful burst of anime goodness may not be flawless, but it's exemplary for the genre, and another of Arc System Works' great efforts. It's quite short and a bit on the shallow end, but when it comes to presentation and sticking close by to the anime, few titles have done it better. For newcomers, it's best to watch the series first, but for Kill la Kill faithful and Trigger enthusiasts, it's a great weekend rental or purchase.

As a revolutionary step forward for the arcade SHMUP, CYGNI: All Guns Blazing misses its mark. However, as a perfectly entertaining arcade romp, it does hit its target. Whether players boot it up and play a level at a time for the story or try to do it all in a single life in Arcade Mode, it hits all the right notes with engaging mechanics, fluid gameplay, challenging enemies that frequently fill the screen, and intense boss battles. CYGNI throws everything and the kitchen sink at players, sometimes to its detriment, because dozens upon dozens of enemies filling the screen did lead to occasional performance issues, even on the PlayStation 5. For a debut effort, KeelWorks should feel proud of CYGNI. It's also a foundation to build on, because there's certainly one in place to make something even better.

There’s nothing out there in video games quite like multiplayer Bomberman. And with the Super Bomberman Collection, we’ve righted a historical wrong, with over half this series previously unavailable in North America without importing carts that wouldn’t fit in a Super Nintendo without taking a pair of pliers to the poor thing. This is a respectable collection that includes multiple new localizations, high quality museum assets, and a dope, new unboxing feature. It doesn’t have the same production value as Konami’s other collections, and it’s a bummer the big sign of that is no online play. But if you can get your friends together in a room, I guarantee you’ll have a megaton blast.

If you're a fan of the ol' ultraviolence, sentient pieces of fruit, attitude akin to that of games like Hotline Miami, or dizzying gorefests, My Friend Pedro is for you. Give it a look, and give the trigger a squeeze. You'll find it has quite the ap-peel.

Had it been released under a different name, it'd be a perfectly serviceable mutliplayer mech adventure, but even with the Metroid name it's well worth picking up for a fun little weekend jaunt, especially if you're the type to return again and again to a game to best your previous scores and advance from there, you'll find an excellent entry in the Metroid series here.

DONTNOD’s self-publishing debut is a worthwhile experience. Twin Mirror is anchored by a fascinating, unraveling mystery and its complex relationships between characters. Though our protagonist feels a bit generic, his unique abilities add a solid spice to gameplay. DONTNOD continues to be an expert at crafting unique and engaging stories.

While I have issues with a few parts of the game, mainly the lower-quality skill tree stuff and gripes related to rogue-lites and old shooters in general, the total package on offer is really strong. At the time of release, the game is only available for PC, which I think could be the biggest negative here. It’s clearly capable of running on less-capable hardware, but I worry that it may go unnoticed unless the team at Blazing Bit Games can find a way to make console ports work financially. If you are already smitten with boomer shooters or rogue-lites, this one is an easy recommendation. I suspect many others will find fun in the myriad easter eggs and tributes to other games (the main menu UI is a Game Boy Advance SP) quite delightful if they aren’t too scared to keep sleeping.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 is a great installation in the Pirate Warriors series and feels like a love letter to fans of the franchise. While the Musou style combat can feel extremely repetitive, it’s also quite satisfying and fun to mess around with. The story is exciting and does a good job at capturing the sense of adventure from the anime, even though we have seen many of these stories before. Bandai Namco’s action-adventure franchise is at its best with One Piece Pirate Warriors 4.

Journey to the Savage Planet is playing in a genre full of titans, and it’s holding its own. The quirky environments and slick traversal systems make it a pleasure to explore. While the humor doesn’t always land, it still has a charm to it. If you can find someone to go on an adventure with you, there’s a lot of entertainment to be found in this bubbly and zany little package.

A rare sequel where the developers took a chance instead of sticking by what was a successful formula. Although I personally wasn’t a fan of the original Watch Dogs, the game sold well and Ubisoft could have easily slapped some new paint on it and released another dreary, boring game. They didn’t though, and I hope it’s a trend other developers pick up on because Watch Dogs 2 is a superior product.

I dig how Monster Hunter Stories’ monster collecting spinoff has evolved over the years. Twisted Reflection has enough juice to be a good RPG for most players between its charming story, interesting characters, and engaging combat. And then when you get to the monster management, it opens up like never before with a wide variety of improvements, discoveries, and stat swapping to make your party as cracked as you want them to be. This game’s hairiest encounters put your party management and pattern recognition to the test in big ways. I wish more of the weapon classes had made it over, and that monster collection didn’t feel so tedious once you’re deep in it, but Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is a fine benchmark for how far these spinoffs have come, and whether you’re returning from previous games or cracking a Stories game for the first time, there’s a lot to love here for stat-loving RPG fans.

Ring Fit Adventure is an excellent cross between fitness and action/adventure. Nintendo manages to create their best exercise game yet while weaving in classic adventure tropes to gamify the experience. Ring Fit Adventure is a great way to usher newcomers into gaming while helping longtime gamers stay in shape.

Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrected is an absolute monster of a game, but both a thoughtful redesign and a fully intact foundation make it one that feels glorious to tame at whatever level you play it, as well as a refreshing and colorful adventure all along the way.

The package is a refinement of the strong showing from last year’s game with a better visual presentation thanks to the stronger hardware afforded by the newest generation of consoles. The new Braking Point story mode is put front and center, but it drives clumsily over the same awful speed bumps that made similar story modes like Madden’s Longshot a forgettable diversion.

If you loved Overwatch, there’s really no reason why you won’t enjoy continuing this journey. If you weren’t a fan, this isn’t going to change your mind. That said, if the first batch of heroes, modes, and maps were any indication, it at least looks like Overwatch 2’s new free-to-play seasonal content rotation is going to keep things interesting for a long time to come.

Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On! needed a few tweaks to make the jump from 3DS to newer platforms, but the final result is a strong thoroughbred of a game. The move to Switch gave Game Freak a chance to update some of Pocket Card Jockey's presentation, updating character models to 3D versions of their original counterparts. Outside of that and the aforementioned changes to the game's visual component, Ride On! is the same Pocket Card Jockey fun offered by the original game. Unique prize-winning ponies like this game don't come along every day, so it's nice to see a new generation on Switch get a chance to take a ride.

Season: A Letter to the future feels like the perfect antidote for someone that’s grown a bit tired of epic, action-heavy adventure games. Scavengers Studio delivers an adventure game that’s warm and peaceful, but still fulfilling and thought-provoking. Although the movement controls can feel a bit clunky, Season: A Letter to the future is an easy recommendation.

It’s visuals and core mechanics hark back to classic action-adventure titles. At the same time, cleverly designed and well defined systems provide for something fresh and exciting.

Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a treasure of both classic tactical RPG design and modern sensibilities. I really like the quality-of-life features that make it so much easier to play and stay on the path of the story without much padding. I can also appreciate that this game also contains some tough-as-nails challenges that take an incredible amount of dedication to overcome. In between all that, it’s also just a great story and I really appreciate the Chariot Tarot system allowing you to see the paths untaken at any point you desire. If you want a great tactical RPG, this is not only the forerunner to many favorites, it’s also well-polished for a new generation.

Despite my shaky feelings on some of the core modes, College Football 26 is a marked improvement over College Football 25. I got a lot out of the smaller changes, like the new Dynamic Substitutions and supplementary Dynasty features. It’s yet to be seen if this franchise will fall into the cynical rinse and repeat pattern that Madden has been on for several years now, but for the time being, it’s more CFB goodness.

The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes is another fun horror romp from Supermassive games. The game improves upon its predecessors by finally removing the fixed camera, and I found several of its characters to be endearing and worth caring for. Though it still falls into some of the same issues as past games in the franchise, The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes is worth playing if you’re a fan of the interactive horror/drama genre.

Costume Quest 2 fits in wonderfully as a Halloween tale, but its RPG mechanics and whimsical quests fit in just as well at all times of the year. It's charming and sweet enough to induce cavities, which really should be what Halloween is all about.

Raft is simply one of the most charming survival games I’ve played. Simply standing on my raft as it floats over the waves through an endless body of water is truly relaxing. There’s also a great sense of pride and achievement that comes with seeing what I’ve built every time I load into the game. It’s an easy recommendation for survival fans that may have been holding off on jumping into early access, as well as those just learning about the game for the first time.

By its very nature, it feels more at home on a handheld. Just in this case, it's a handheld system that's tethered to your living room console.

SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated may be the same game from 2003, albeit wrapped up in a pretty package with some extra, slightly frivolous bells, but it’s delightfully nostalgic. It’s a solid execution on a game that has only grown with popularity since its release. For those ‘90s kids out there, it offers a moment of relaxation, a short break to slip back to a time that was a bit easier than now. Much like SpongeBob, I need it.

By most standards, Grey Goo is an excellent real-time strategy game with fantastically unique factions and stunning graphics. Its campaign undermines some of its positive aspects with a steep difficulty curve, some annoying "gotcha" moments, and maps that can make it difficult for expansion.

Octopath Traveler succeeds where other classically-styled RPGs fail: the presentation is spot-on, the combat is addictive, and the potential for party customization is tremendous. Small stumbles with dialog and framerate can be forgiven simply because the rest of the game is an absolute delight. This is an experience that players can easily get lost in for dozens of hours, and it's sure to be counted among the best Nintendo Switch exclusives released to date.

Given some of the recent marketing and with the way release windows worked out, CrossWorlds is inevitably going to draw comparisons to Mario Kart World. After spending time with both games, it feels like an apples and oranges (or F1 and NASCAR, if you prefer) comparison. CrossWorlds is good enough to stand on its own and even above previous Sonic racing games. Just put the car in gear and enjoy the ride.

The idea of going back to a sort of Version 1.0 experience of Cities is actually enticing to me. Fast Travel Games has already promised that Cities: VR is set to grow over time with content updates and more. As it is, it’s still a great jumping off point for the VR adaptation. I once again lost myself in its urban management often as long as my headset would allow me to play. The planning and reacting to various events around your town is still fun to handle and the VR controls are good for it. All-in-all, Cities: VR might be a little limited to those who want everything the PC version has come to offer in terms of features and visuals, but still, it might be one of the most relaxing VR titles around right now and feels like it’s bound to only get better from here.

Taking on the role of Kat is rush of an experience, and there’s so much here to absorb that you’ll need a couple dozen hours to get through it all. Whether or not you played the original Gravity Rush or are looking for a unique game to add to your PlayStation 4 library, Gravity Rush 2 is certainly a breath of fresh air.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii won’t take up as much of your time as Yakuza 6 or Infinite Wealth, but it’s most certainly a fun and exciting way to pass the time with our favorite Mad Dog of Shimano while we wait for RGG’s next big thing.

There are often no right answers in life, no quick and easy way to tell what someone is really after or see the ripples from your choices until it’s too late to do anything about them. Static Dread understands that, and asks you to do the best you can in an impossible situation. My keeper was defiant and kind, and he didn’t always make the right calls, but he tried to. The story I experienced was the result of those choices. Static Dread isn’t a long game (my playthrough clocked in at about 10 hours), but it kept me compelled throughout its runtime and never overstayed its welcome. Its low-fi, contained horror isn’t going to scare the pants off of you, but it is unsettling, and it will keep you guessing until the end. Just… do yourself a favor: when the night rolls in, stay in the light.

As long as you know that it's dangerous to go alone, Extraction is a blast. With Ubisoft Montreal looking to add more content in the future, I'll be ready to exterminate alien parasites for a long time to come.

Sniper Elite 4 offers more of the same great gameplay that its predecessors were known for while tightening it up for the current generation. Rebellion has crafted a sniper simulator that, while not for everyone, has the complexity and polish to be one of the best shooters of 2017.

I just can’t quit Iron Rain. It’s just too addictively fun to give up on and any EDF fan that’s been around long enough is most likely used to these games having a few blemishes. In the case of Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain, in particular, the good definitely outweighs the bad.

There's a lot of depth in this game and it's a real treat to play, assuming you're the patient type that sticks around long enough to enjoy it.

As a story of loss, grief, and acceptance, Tales of Kenzera: Zau is a game like few out there. It's short and, in some ways, it can be basic. Given the story that it's telling, that's just fine.

Control is an experience not to be missed. Remedy Entertainment has gone above and beyond to realize the game's paranormal-themed world, and the result is something so entrancing and bizarre that there's really little else to compare it to.

Although the stealth missions can be annoying--as is the fact that cut scenes can't be skipped and how there's only one save slot for the campaign--I can see myself returning to Kyrat despite its faults. There's so much to explore, and the world has so much detail that it's hard not to be drawn back.

Super Mario 35 is an absolute pleasure, taking the usual Nintendo nostalgia and offering a different way to experience it. I couldn't have pictured anything like a classic Mario game working in a competitive battle royale environment, but Nintendo has made it happen and it's loads of fun.

Although the sequel does not tread any new ground in terms of gameplay, the additional recipes and tales should be enough to satisfy both seasoned baristas and newcomers alike.

Sniper Elite: Resistance is very much worth your time if you have any interest in sniping, exploring maps in occupied France, or feeling like an action hero from WWII movies. The shooting mechanics, both at long-range and in close quarters, are fun and satisfying. There's nothing quite like using the sound of the thunderstorm to mask your sniper shots, or landing several silenced headshots from your pistol in a row. Gathering collectibles, unlocking attachments for your weapons, and finding new and interesting ways to tackle each objective gives Sniper Elite: Resistance a lot of replay value. Add in co-op mode, the Invasion mode, and all-out multiplayer, plus DLC and a season pass, and you'll be spending many hours behind enemy lines. If you're like me, it may just be the best time you've had in a stealth action game since Splinter Cell.

While the game can be a bit repetitive and some of the number puzzles either too difficult or too simple depending on the situation, this is an exciting and well-executed puzzle title that should certainly be experienced once, even if you're just in it for how impossibly cool all the characters look.

Disc Room wants to cut you in so many ways. It wants to chew you up, dismantle you, and make you say a swear or 50 creatively woven into the same sentence. It’s bullet hell without the regular therapy of being able to return fire. But for all of those aspects, it's also horribly addicting. The ease of picking up where you left off and trying your darndest to survive just a little bit longer to unlock a room left me putting down my controller, rubbing my head, and then often picking it up to say, “this will be the time I get it. This time.” It’s not a ridiculously long or complex romp. But it also doesn’t really need to be. It knows what it wants to be. It wants to be your murderer. And the only way you’re going to thwart it is by surviving just long enough to open its next doors and beat its myriad of challenges.

Flock knows how to make the most out of the mundane. It takes a simple idea like bird watching and takes it to its most imaginative conclusion. It takes those birds and gives them cartoonishly whimsical designs while also giving them complex enough behaviors that charming them into your flock isn't a walk in the park. It's a delightful low-stakes affair, one that feels rewarding once you get a rare creature into your ranks. Those looking for a low-pressure, artistic adventure about documenting birds should join this Flock. Bring a friend, because the skies await.

As a new entry in an old-school racing series, Screamer hardly bears resemblance to its origins. But at the same time, it shoots for a similar target. This is an over the top spectacle of a racer that needles in an interest in sim-adjacent car physics and handling. The target just looks a lot different these days, as the definition of “over the top” is subject to inflation here in the video game world. Three decades later, a realistic setting with cool, intense animations has translated to realistic physics in an epic-length anime story with similar production values and style to something like Dispatch. It’s absurd, but that absurdity is executed with such confidence that it sells the whole package, warts and all. Prospective fans who are more on the casual side will struggle, but in this case that struggle has an excellent reward system in the form of a storytelling strength you almost never see in this genre.

It’s not perfect, it’s not easy to learn, and there are some characters missing that I feel are must-haves. However, a solid visual redesign, good netcode, original and returning music, a great collection of fighting mechanics, and a wide offering of tutorial and training tools make King of Fighters XV feel like one of the strongest entries in the franchise yet.

It shows how Nintendo can put its experience, even with some dips in quality, to use making a standout game. With the addition of new visual capabilities, stellar track design, and a continued slow march toward modern online functionality, this is the best the series has been since the GameCube era. If Mario Kart 8 is showing its age, it’s a spry octogenarian if I ever saw one.

Heading Out is an intricate, compelling story that mixes modular storytelling and roguelike structure with deeply America-flavored media of the 1970s and on, particularly the “road” genre. I’m not a car guy but I do enjoy some crusty Americana, especially the kind that challenges authority and romanticizes the sheer scale and variety of this unhinged nation. Sometimes it may get a little too cute for its own good, but for the most part Heading Out captures its intended vibe with a shocking level of skill and accuracy, an academic level of cultural understanding through a lens of media and literature. That’s pretty darn cool. Between that and the intriguing, almost insincere roguelike structure, we have a game that doesn’t really feel like anything else in its own space.

Satisfying fans is one thing, but this one subverted my skepticism and brought me back.

EA Vancouver tried to sell dekes, cosmetics, and the idea of being a superstar, but what resonated with me, an old-school hockey guy, were the core gameplay improvements.

Gauntlet is the perfect party game. It brings people together while tearing them apart. There's fast action that's easy to pick up for more casual players, and a decent selection of relics for players that want to make to experiment with ways to make their character an unstoppable loot grabbing killing machine.

An adequate follow up to 2016’s indie darling. It hosts a plethora of new puzzles that force players to think, but without making them go mad. Too many checkpoints may turn off players looking for a genuine challenge, though. The all new dynamic of co-op really gives a jolt of energy to this game; Without that new component I’m afraid Unravel 2 would’ve just felt like a level expansion. Those that really dug the first Unravel will love what its sequel has to offer.

Just Cause 4 is a very entertaining package and its potential won’t be fully tapped for a long time.

There are still things that need addressing, but NHL 19 is the best hockey experience I’ve had with the NHL franchise in the PS4 era.

Ultimately, what do I score a game like Unbeatable that has such observable problems but some of the most heart-pumping emotional resonance I’ve experienced in games throughout this entire year? What cute, little video game review cliche can I lean on to help me out of this predicament? D-Cell itself offered a cheeky, little take at how review scores can be perceived, and I figure why not send that ball back over the net? I was thinking a seven at first, but Sonic Adventure 2’s problems are way more frustrating than Unbeatable’s. And I am a little shy as a person. So let’s go with that.

While the Uncharted series does have few bumps and bruises, and Drake’s wrinkles have deepened over time, fans of the Drake’s story, and action adventure games alike, couldn’t have asked for anything better.

An expanded roster and rollback netcode for online fights are pretty much the only things Rising does differently from Versus. Sure, you’ve got Grand Bruise Legends, a cute, but short-lived battle royale that borrows from Fall Guys. There’s also a robust training mode, and it’s hard to overexaggerate just how much better online play is thanks to rollback netcode. Online matches have hardly any lag, even when I played on my Asus ROG Ally - which Rising is technically not optimized for. Battles play out much more smoothly than they did in Versus, and while that sounds like a simple idea, it’s hard to overstate how substantial the effect is for online play.

Tron: Identity weaves an interesting detective story that expands the franchise mythos. While those invested in the lore will enjoy diving deeper into this universe, newcomers would have benefitted from a bit more exposition. Despite that, Tron: Identity’s branching story, puzzles, and visuals make it quite an enjoyable visual novel.

It's been a fun ten years, and The Jackbox Party Pack 10, like so many Jackbox efforts before it, is a worthy inclusion into your family game night rotation.

If EA Sports and Codemasters intended to create a WRC experience that is immersive, welcoming to newcomers, and a fun and reasonably faithful representation of the sport, then they have absolutely succeeded. As someone who enjoys racing but has never participated in the rally side of motorsports, the learning curve was manageable and the end result is that I can't wait to get back behind the wheel for another sweaty and adrenaline-filled session as soon as possible. The hardcore crowd that was hoping for a deep simulation of rally racing will likely be left wanting for more...Perhaps the biggest compliment I can pay EA Sports WRC is that the experience in this game has prompted me to explore more of the rally sport in real life. I'll be checking out some rally championships in the future and strive to improve my driving skills on something other than a nicely asphalted racetrack with gentle flowing curves.

The Jackbox Party Pack 9 has more hits than misses and the hits came in some unexpected spots. Even the games that were expected to be good wound up being far better than I could have anticipated. Add this to some noteworthy quality-of-life improvements, like the ability to log into a room using a QR code, and Jackbox Games continues to bring the goods. As long as the team keeps things simple, there's no reason to stop adding The Jackbox Party Pack to your regular game night rotation. It remains as reliable as it gets.

For now, Marvel Rivals is a fine foray into the realm of hero shooters. It's tough to imagine making a splash in such saturated waters, but NetEase has managed to do it with its diverse hero roster, its monetization model, and its usage of destructible worlds. This will be a fun game to watch develop over time, and I'm excited to see where it is at this time next year, but for what it is now, this is a stellar debut.

It may be that all the added bells and whistles won't be enough to bring modern gamers around to the traditional Mega Man formula, but for series fans keen on diving back into the classic releases, both Mega Man Legacy Collections are an absolute treat.

An amalgam of excellent new augments, though for the most part it stays the same and implements new looks and skins. I'm not sure there's enough that it actually changes from the other game, but there's still plenty here to enjoy and hungrily devour, like Pac-Man and ghosts, if you're a diehard fan or even have a passing interest in the game.

While the heavy tilt towards simulation provided by Project Cars 2 is not really in my wheelhouse, I can still objectively see it for what it is, a love letter to driving that hardcore players will find irresistible.

The Walking Dead: The Final Season is a testament to what great writing talent can accomplish. Even with the game's increasingly archaic engine and an art style that isn't quite as unique as it used to be, The Final Season offers a story that ranks up there with the original first season. It is a marvelous piece of work and acts as a bookend to one of the best gaming sagas of the decade.

MLB 14: The Show is another excellent entry in the series from Sony San Diego, with enough "new" to make it feel fresh. Online isn't quite where it should be just yet, but what's here will keep you swinging for the fences regardless. The PS3 version is excellent, and establishes a solid base for the PS4 version coming next month.

Mado Monogatari: Fia and the Wondrous Academy isn’t going to light the world on fire and turn millions of gamers on to a lost RPG franchise of gold, but it is neat that it exists and hasn’t gone through any weird legal filters. Sega heads finally don’t have to be a savvy enough person to be aware of niche-within-a-niche fan translations to get a little slice of history of their favorite puzzle game. Mystery Dungeon sickos may be disappointed with a game that looks like one of those but thoroughly isn’t, but the combat mechanics feel distinct and fun to play with even if their busyness doesn’t always translate to a challenge. Sometimes a dungeon-crawler can just be cute, and that’s okay.

I walked away from Captain Spirit wanting to know more about where the story is headed, but even without the game's overt hints pointing to the eventual Life is Strange sequel, I enjoyed Chris' story for what it was. And given the current state of the world, it's nice to experience a story from the eyes of an innocent child. Captain Spirit challenges players to approach it with a different perspective and that challenge is one everyone should welcome.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 offers an excellent framework on which more can be built. The world, especially the Zone, is just oozing with style, and the systems that are present are worth investing in, despite how shallow they can feel compared to other games in adjacent genres. Honestly, if I wasn’t so enamoured with this gorgeous world, I’d be scoring this lower. Similarly, if there was just more to do and richer systems in place to engage with, it’d be higher. I think that those out there who love the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. franchise will feel at home in this game, as the world is stunning, the sense of loneliness and isolation permeates everything, and the combat against the human factions is intense. Fortunately, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is still on its path to greatness. It’s just going to need a little more love to get it to its destination. I just hope the rest of the journey is a bit faster than Skif’s walking speed.

It's honestly a shame that the story quality takes such a dip compared to previous games and can't complement the combat improvements. This is a game that trades in eight captivating character arcs for one mediocre one, and quality-of-life improvements like "The Story So Far" recaps at the start of each chapter can only help so much. There are very few exceptions in this game where you feel like a companion Traveler character has a satisfying storyline, but the rest of them feel faceless and interchangeable. Honestly, this series deserves better than that, especially given how much I enjoyed the game's town-building component. It's one step forward, one step back for Octopath Traveler 0. Or maybe that's eight steps forward and eight steps back? Really, who's counting?

I went into The Axis Unseen hoping it would be my jam, and it was. It even made me okay with not having a map (well, after a while), and as someone who has a terrible sense of direction on their best day, that’s no mean feat. I just wanted to explore its world, fight new monsters, and see what I could find. Mostly, though, I think about the stories I got to tell while playing it, like that bit with the Elder Horned Beast I told you about at the beginning here. A little while after I got the fire arrows, I realized I could probably kill a Tree Golem with them, and when I finally ran into one, I finally took it down. It was incredible. And there are so many stories like that in The Axis Unseen. I hope the technical issues get fixed, but even with them, I think Just Purkey Games has made something special. Just... be careful if you venture into this realm between realms? You’re off the edge of the map. Here be dragons. But if you play it right, the scariest thing in this world might just be you.

MLB The Show 23 is another solid addition in what is the best annual sports sim franchise. San Diego Studio continues to show a deep knowledge and understanding of baseball and the culture surrounding it. The addition of The Negro Leagues is a massive improvement to the overall product, and the ability to scan your face into Road to the Show is a fun new feature as well. Outside of some minor league woes, MLB The Show is another grand slam.

There are a few open-world games that sit above the rest, but Assassin’s Creed Odyssey falls just short of them. Its use of systems that appear in other open-world Ubisoft titles make this a bit like a yearly installment of a sports franchise looking to build on last year than a genre-defining experience.

I once again have to point to Minishoot’ Adventures succeeding where it matters most: execution. Genre mashups are plentiful these days, and sometimes the math is off, or there’s something incongruous the developers struggle to overcome. I think of games like TMNT: Tactical Takedown or Pac-Man World 2’s bizarre Sonic DLC as recent examples of mashups going hard in the paint and nailing premises that sound odd on paper. Minishoot’ Adventures definitely stands among them as a new stellar example of presenting a strange-sounding concept and nailing it at a base level.

PGA Tour 2K25 places plenty of pressure on EA Sports PGA Tour to step up its game. The two-year hiatus has given 2K’s latest effort, with its solid gameplay and improved graphics, a slight edge over its rival. It’s disappointing that a couple of the new mechanics in MyCareer don’t go far enough, and the microtransaction shenanigans with the equipment and locked skill trees have been shoehorned in unnecessarily. Still, the game is sitting at the top of the leaderboard when it comes to golf sims and is looking back at EA to see if it can catch up or be left in the sand trap.

Children of the Sun excels where it counts. It’s a cerebral puzzle in which you weave a bullet between targets, and solving the puzzle is dangerously satisfying.

It feels like Battlefield, it works like Battlefield, and it has plenty of opportunities for amazing things to happen that have only ever happened in a Battlefield game. It’s nice to see DICE returning to the roots of what makes this series so amazing, and I’m happy that, for the first time in years, a new Battlefield game doesn’t feel like it is in the middle of an identity crisis.

There’s a lot to digest with the latest entry in the series – from new mechanics and weapons to the return of some iconic demon classes – and Doom Eternal is one hell of a good time.

The way in which you cut your own destiny within Wrath of the Righteous might be as close to the creative freedom of a proper tabletop RPG campaign as I've gotten out of a video game adaptation of one.

Despite the lack of multiplayer and fetch-quests that interrupt the blood-spilling action, Wolfenstein: The New Order is a welcome return to form for the series. Its gameplay is good fun, whether you prefer blasting enemies to bits or being sneaky-like. The beautiful presentation makes the most out of the new hardware, and it squeezes some impressive life out of older systems. Blazkowicz's return has a long time coming, but Machine Games has assured that it was worth it.