Back to the Dawn is a deceptively deep game. It draws you in with its quirky animal characters and holds you tight with its complex mechanics, branching narratives, and brutal sense of fairness. There’s no hand-holding here, just a dense sandbox where your choices, relationships, and instincts shape the story. It's not always easy, and sometimes the game feels downright punishing. But that’s the point. You’ll fail. You’ll restart. And you’ll come back smarter, more prepared, and even more determined to crack the system or break free from it. For fans of RPGs, survival sims, and story-rich adventures, this is one prison worth checking into. Just don’t expect it to be a walk in the yard.

Darkest Dungeon II is everything I expected and more. An evolution of the series that introduces so many new mechanics that I can hardly believe that this is a sequel to the original Darkest Dungeon. Less punishing and frustrating than the first game, Darkest Dungeon II offers fans of the series a myriad of options when it comes to creating the perfect party. The thing that didn’t change from the first game is the pain you feel when your most powerful hero fails a “death’s door” check because you thought it would survive one more hit. Darkest Dungeon II is a near-perfect roguelite that’s hard to surpass.

Sifu is a memorable game. It is also a hard game that rewards patience and the willingness to perfect yourself. It is not perfect, but it is fair. One of the few negative aspects we encountered is the camera control that in some scenes it is not just a pain in the ass, but it can cost you an entire run. Another thing we would have oved to see is a more detailed character building, where the story is not just a frame for the action. But all these are just minor inconveniences when we look art Sifu as a whole. It does not feel like an indie game, but still, it is not for everyone. You need patience and you need the ability to get over the countless moments when the game frustrates you to the limit of exasperation. It is all part of becoming a kung fu master, a path reserved only for a few.

The extremely stupid humor, top-notch combat and wide range of weaponry make Borderlands 3 one of the best shooters of all-time. Although it's an old formula, Borderlands 3 offers one of the best shlooter experiences you can get.

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen for the PC delivers a compelling RPG experience with great combat mechanics and a varied world to explore. It can be quite tough if you’re trying to speed through the main quest, but patient players who complete side quests and gear up their character, as well as their Pawns, will find plenty of things to enjoy in Capcom’s RPG.

Beyond Earth is just as innovative when it comes to the mechanics of the turn-based strategy series as Civilization V was before it and gamers will need a bit of time to become accustomed to the increased customization, the tech web and the powerful challenge posed by the alien life.

Fans of real-world sport will probably pick F1 Manager 2024 because it gives them the option to create their custom team and then take on the established powers of the sport. It’s fun to pick one of the origins and then strive to use every small competitive advantage to get at least a few wins against the likes of Ferrari or Red Bull. The morale system is a good addition, although it does need a little balancing, and mechanical issues add another level of excitement and dread to the races. The race simulation still creates some weird moments, but it generally feels solid. F1 Manager 2024 is a step forward for the racing series and a solid way to experience Formula 1 in video game form.

One of the biggest surprises of this year, Jagged Alliance 3 breathes new life into a series that was mediocre at best. There are a lot of reasons to play the new Jagged Alliance game, but the most important one is the overall gameplay experience that’s incredibly addictive if you’re fond of turn-based tactical games. Despite some minor issues with the camera and weapon variation, Jagged Alliance 3 is by far the best game in the series. It’s challenging, fun, and extremely addictive, so there’s absolutely no reason not to give it a try.

Vietnam '65 is an interesting video game, but it is unlikely that it will manage to gain a huge audience in its current form, because it is working with a setting that's not particularly attractive and because it makes logistics more important than actual combat.

Assassin's Creed: Origins is far from being a bad game, but fails to achieve greatness as well. If Ubisoft would have cut half of the low-quality content, I think we would have gotten a much better game. While there's definitely room for improvement, I strongly believe that the Assassin's Creed franchise took a turn in the right direction.

For all the missed opportunities, Tales of Vesperia Definitive Edition perfectly catches the spirit of the series. Its biggest achievement is that it puts a great cast of characters front and center without compromising the JRPG-centric narrative style. Although it does little to refine the Tales formula, Vesperia is clearly a must-play for any JRPG fan, if not for the rather uninspired and predictable story, but for the characterization, great voice acting and more often than not hilarious conversations.

The Legend of Tianding shows how indie developers can mix solid mechanics and cool history-based protagonists to deliver a fresh take on the classic side-scrolling brawler experience. The game is tough but fair, asking players to master a series of moves and constantly finding new ways to test their skills. I would have liked less backtracking and, maybe, more meaningful side quests but simply engaging with the core missions is very fun. The Taiwan historical setting mixes very well with the presentation. More developers should try to use universes that have not been previously explored to add another dimension to their titles. And all fans of the genre should play The Legend of Tianding to enjoy its many good ideas and great execution.

Overall, the folks at Complex Games have done a great job adapting one of the most popular tabletop games in the world and turning it into a video game. Ironically, Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters feels like the natural evolution of the XCOM franchise.

Wasteland 2 is a game which appeals to a rather narrowly-defined set of gamers, but seems to deliver all the features and concepts that role-playing post-apocalyptic fans are interested in, which means that it can provide them with hundreds of hours of enjoyment.

I can’t recommend Anno 1800 enough. I was legitimately worried that Ubisoft might try to bring the entire franchise into the present, but I’m happy to say that my fears were unfounded. The game is a love letter to the old city-building games, while still managing to innovate and surprise even veteran players.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is worthy of the name, and that was no easy task for Infinity Ward. We also have to mention that Infinity Ward is only present in name, as the team that made the original 2007 iteration has long since departed Activision. I played the game on PC, and I have to have to say that it looks stunning. From the looks of it, each new edition of Call of Duty somehow manages to enhance the graphics without impacting the hardware. The only problem I found was the time it took to preload the shaders, a process that was supposed to take place only once. But it was triggered again after the update.

Have a Nice Death is a good combination of action and rogue-lite, with a good balance between the difficulty of the combat, especially the boss fights, and the pace of the unlocks. It pays to focus on one weapon and really learn how to use it and when to complement it with a spell or secondary attack. Boss engagements are all about patience and pattern recognition. The game’s presentation complements the mechanics and themes well, although some more variety when it comes to the procedurally generated floors is needed. Have a Nice Death knows what fans of its genre want and offers an interesting universe to explore and great mechanics.

The two new tables do not deliver any new narrative elements, but they manage to create a new level of excitement around the adventures of Rey, Finn, Kylo Ren, and the rest of the cast by delivering interactivity, even if it is somewhat limited by the pinball mechanics.

There aren't too many things that Wings of Ruin doesn't do right for a turn-based game set in the Monster Hunter universe. Too many loading times and the rather ugly visuals (in the first part of the game) might detract from the game's appeal, but the addictive Pokemon-like monster hatching mechanic and the deep combat are more than enough to keep players invested throughout an entire playthrough. Despite the cliché story scenario, the game does have its surprising moments that can get you emotional rather quickly. At the end of the day, I believe Wings of Ruin's lighthearted narrative is perfectly suited for a Monster Hunter game that's all about hatching monsters to help you hunt the same monsters.

Ultimately, if you liked the first game, you will most certainly enjoy the sequel. It offers a much more solid RPG experience with lots of options for almost any type of playthrough. The writing is superior, the character progression system makes a lot more sense, and the level design is top notch too, along with voice acting.

Galactic Civilizations III is a great game, containing a mix of familiar mechanics and new ideas that can keep both fans and newcomers occupied for a frighteningly long period of time...The best thing about the new Stardock-created turn-based experience is that it is so customizable, and the experience of playing in the resulting galaxies creates stories that are consistently fun and filled with surprises.

Ultros major issue is that it isn’t as weird and hallucinatory as it wants to be. Sure, this space burial site that overflows with life offers an interesting setting with some impressive visual touches. The narrative is somewhat obscure, and occult tinged. But neither is enough to keep players engaged in the long run if they don’t already like this mix of exploration, combat, and platforming. And the game offers limited details about many of its systems, with the constant loops adding to the confusion. Ultros requires patience and a significant time investment but it offers an immersive world and good core mechanics.

Gunbrella delivers a great combination of platforming and combat, punctuated by challenging boss fights and plenty of character interactions. The game introduces new ideas and challenges at a good pace and boredom never sets in. The narrative could have used some extra weirdness, but the universe is engaging and offers some cool moments. The game could have used more variety when it comes to battle scenarios and maybe a little less backtracking. Gunbrella implements the core ideas of action platforming well and adds plenty of fun new ideas that will appeal both to newcomers and genre veterans.

Desktop Dungeons: Rewind’s idea of mixing exploration with health and mana regeneration is great, as are how players can use it. It’s very fun to explore the levels, discover enemies, decide the best way to tackle them, and then, finally, gather enough resources to kill the boss and take the trophy. The rest of the experience, including the kingdom development and the puzzles, is competent but not as impressive. Upgrades should probably cost a little less. But the core gameplay root is so good that Desktop Dungeons: Rewind is the rare game I plan to return to frequently, if only for one or two runs.

When I started playing Constance, I had no idea what to expect. Releasing a metroidvania so close to Silksong was a gamble, but I think it paid off. Constance might not be the 30+ hour juggernaut that game is, but it has a heartwarming story and its platforming is excellent. The narrative is amazing, and the unique painting mechanic adds risk, but also rewards strategic thinking, too. You’re also rewarded if you explore, which is important for this type of game. Constance has its caveats, like limited fast travel or the main character not speaking at all during the game. However, those things are by design, and they tie into the game’s approach towards stress and mental health. This is a type of game that can help you rethink some of your choices in life, while also giving you 4-5 hours of intense platforming goodness, and it’s a breath of fresh air for the genre.

Kingdom Eighties will satisfy any players who picked up one of the previous installments in the series and appreciates its indirect strategy concept. The four main characters are pretty cool, the rest of the kids do great work chopping down trees and battling demons, and the presentation is impressive in how well it evokes the ‘80s. The action is sometimes a little slow, and relying on others to act can lead to some frustration. Still, the universe of Kingdom Eighties is so nice, and the nostalgia vibes are so strong that it’s worth investing time to experience both its mechanics and narrative.

Company of Heroes 3 is too conservative in terms of gameplay and fails to make its big new mode work as expected. Battles, from skirmishes to bespoke missions in the Italian campaign, are great fun and offer cool tactical puzzles to solve. The strategy map does add another dimension to the experience but patches are needed to realize its full potential. The multiplayer offers variety and will satisfy those who loved the first two installments. What disappoints me the most is the lack of innovation. Everything that’s entirely new is either marginal or doesn’t work as it should. Company of Heroes 3 does have great real-time strategy battles but the rest of the mechanics fail to deliver on their potential.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from Like a Dragon: Ishin!, but I have to say it is a very well put together game that offers plenty of fun. Even on harder difficulty settings you feel like you have a fighting chance, but the farming of materials will take some time, so it will eventually start feeling repetitive. There is plenty of content to keep you entertained, and the game diversifies and adds new gameplay elements up to the end. It might not be the most memorable of the series, but it is a game that is worthy both of the Yakuza and Like a Dragon series.