Hyper Empire uses an innovative approach to tackle a classic problem of the strategy genre: it takes too long to play a campaign, which leads to abandonment. The development team at Fair Weather Studios has created a tight experience that offers interesting choices, decent automated combat, and five factions to play as. The lore isn’t original, and events don’t have a ton of impact on the campaign and the presentation isn’t impressive. Some extra balancing is needed when it comes to hymn and tech effects, as well as victory conditions. Hyper Empire’s core game loop is very good and the fact that you can get through a campaign in half an hour is an achievement in itself.

Atomfall takes inspiration from many games, including Stalker, the Metro series, Fallout, while also adding Rebellion’s amazing sandbox gameplay. What you’re getting here is an immersive sandbox with a wonderful, new approach to storytelling and fresh ideas. Yes, not everything clicks from the start, and you might be confused at first. However, as the story develops, you get engulfed into the story, and the choices you make will affect how you finish the game. I think it’s well worth a try for anyone who wants a proper FPS/RPG blend with an interesting story, and one that doesn’t overstay its welcome!

Cataclismo isn’t very deep when it comes to mechanics or narrative. But the freedom of taking chunks of wood and blocks of stone to create defenses and a variety of other structures is very engaging and enhances everything else about the title. It helps that a player can choose between the more directed experience of the campaign and the extra freedom associated with endless mode and skirmishes. Using limited resources to plan sturdy fortifications is made easy by the copy-paste features and the fact that the entire Steam Workshop serves as a reserve of blueprints. Cataclismo’s core idea is good and extra focus on city management would make it even better.

MULLET MADJACK is a great first-person action gamer with a strong core idea that it executes beautifully. It plays fast, it’s violent enough, and it gives players a variety of weapons to eliminate evil robots with. There are enough difficulty levels to cater to the most hardcore FPS fans looking for a challenge while also welcoming players who simply want to enjoy the action and take in the atmosphere. The story setup is good enough for the short and adrenaline-filled runs, although some lines tend to get repetitive and slightly annoying. The game looks impressive and has a very good soundtrack. The only gameplay-related issues are the relatively uninspired bosses and the end-of-floor upgrades, which sometimes feel divorced from the player’s situation. MULLET MADJACK is fun and fast and shows how a carefully designed FPS can satisfy a large audience.

Wednesdays isn’t a traditional video game that gives players a clear problem to solve using a particular set of mechanics. The title seeks to explore a very difficult theme, sexual abuse during childhood while giving players the space to process their own emotions. The entire effort is sustained by good writing and by a focus on healing and what the future has to offer. The Orca Park game-within-the-game is simplistic but works well as a framework for the conversations. Gameplay is easy to understand and serves the theme well. Wednesdays manages to explore Tim’s life without being preachy and without giving into despair, offering hope that healing is possible.

Memory Lost has an interesting core mechanic, and it creates complex combat puzzles around it. Playing on Normal, the game requires players to move fast and aim well but also to constantly plan when to swift into another body and consider which is best suited for the tactical situation. When everything clicks, battles are exciting and fluid. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t give gamers much to keep them engaged if frustration with gameplay kicks in. And the game’s presentation is decent but not spectacular. Memory Lost will please players who have a fondness for action and can tolerate some issues but might struggle to find a wider audience.

In a time when many game studios are playing it safe, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii proves once again that the Like a Dragon series thrives on reinvention. With its engaging pirate theme, deep mechanics, and classic Yakuza charm, this is an adventure that will keep players hooked for countless hours. Whether you're sailing the high seas, brawling in the streets, or belting out sea shanties at karaoke, one thing is certain—this is one voyage you won’t want to miss. Fair warning for hardcore fans though: while still fun and over the top it still feels like the lightest and thinnest entry in the series.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is definitely an evolutionary rather than a revolutionary installment in the series. Every mechanic from the previous games has been polished, refined to make more sense, but there’s really nothing new that would radically change anything for the better. I don’t think the extra year that Ubisoft used to make the game was worth it since Shadows isn’t much different than Valhalla, Origins, or Mirage. Yes, it’s much more polished and looks a lot better visually, but it doesn’t bring back the gameplay and mystery of the first games in the series. Overall, I had a great time with Assassin’s Creed Shadows, but that’s because I’m a fan of the series. I have doubts that a newcomer to the series will find it equally interesting, especially since the overarching story is just serviceable.

Is this year’s WWE game worth it? Each year, WWE games offer an incremental update. This year, the animations are much better, they allow intergender matches, and having up to 8 people in the ring shows they made significant changes to the engine. Plus, the match details, from throwing items away, blood, welts and bruises, all of those make the game feel very realistic, while still retaining the WWE style and appeal. There’s a wealth of content, dozens of hours of fun, and a game mode for everyone, no matter if you’re into being a general manager, card collector or want a cohesive wrestling-focused story. WWE 2K25 packs a huge amount of content, and it’s enough to satisfy even the most avid wrestling fans. I wish they added the Island mode on PC though. But even without that, it’s an excellent adventure in the world of wrestling, and it brings your wrestling dreams to life!

Expelled! might be built on the bones of Overboard! but it manages to improve on it both mechanically and in terms of story. Verity is a great protagonist, and the many mysteries linked to the characters and the school itself are a pleasure to unravel. A run can end in 15 minutes and in utter failure but still feel like progress. The idea that turning more towards evil opens up new options is a good one but simply choosing the red option to get results sometimes feels artificial. And the characters are strong enough that I wanted to interact with more of them. Expelled! doesn’t innovate mechanically but the narrative is engrossing and fun, with a great heroine at its core.

FATE: Reawakened tests your skills, while also rewarding or penalizing those of us that enjoy taking risks. Those that already played the original and expansions will take some time to get accustomed with all these changes. However, if you never played the FATE series, this is the definitive edition you should go for.

Arsène Lupin – Once a Thief" is a decent but flawed adventure. Its premise of experiencing the world both through the eyes of Lupin and the detective chasing him is engaging, and some puzzles are genuinely enjoyable. However, the deduction mechanics feel cumbersome, and the trial-and-error approach prevents the game from reaching its full potential. Those who appreciate a good mystery and strong character-driven storytelling may find it worthwhile, but players expecting an innovative or fast-paced experience should temper their expectations. Despite its imperfections, the game may still serve as an inviting gateway to Maurice Leblanc’s original stories and, hopefully, will warrant future iterations and further glimpses of some of the most famous gentlemen thieves’ lives.

Split Fiction is an amazing game, and it is akin of any kids first visit to a candy store. It is crammed full of new ideas, new gameplay mechanics, bigger and shinier levels, but somehow along the way it’s lost a part of its soul and along with it some of the appeal It Takes Two had. Don’t get me wrong, it is a very good game, and I cannot recommend it enough, but the characters and the flow of the gameplay seem to have been misplaced among all the new things the developer throws at you. For me, this is a split experience.

Shadowveil: Legend of The Five Rings is a fast and varied run-focused game. The automated combat isn’t too visually engaging but has an option to, VHS-tape style, accelerate the flow of time. Players have a lot of ways to customize their unique hero and samurai, from classes with unique associated ability cards to clan upgrades to equipment to battle-specific spirits. It makes each run engaging in its own right and offers plenty of space for meta-progression. The fictional universe is decent, but the story lacks a unique element to keep players invested. Maybe the pair of twins need to talk more, or the world needs to feature extra lore. Shadowveil: Legend of The Five Rings develops a good rhythm and offers plenty of variety but the lack of direct control never feels natural.

Kingdom Come Deliverance II proves once again that you can create a great game without taking into consideration any survey or “market trend.” Although it remains a sandbox RPG at its core, the writing and voice acting make the sequel to Kingdom Come Deliverance an incredibly immersive experience. Without reinventing the sandbox formula, the fine folks at Warhorse Studios deliver an outstanding overall gameplay experience. There are very few things that I would change at KCD II like some of the mini-games, which are frustrating at times. Even though it’s probably one of the best games of the year, I wouldn’t recommend Kingdom Come Deliverance II to those who aren’t used to the sandbox experience and would rather chase the main story. This game is built to rather let the players create their own story, so it might become boring after a while.

Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered is a decent effort that stays true to the original games while adding welcome minor refinements. The visual upgrades, new control options, and extra content make this a must-have for longtime fans and a great entry point for newcomers. Unfortunately, not fixing the bugs still feels lazy, even if some may say it is part of nostalgia. If you modernize the graphics, you should have made an effort to also improve the technical parts of the game to alleviate frustration. Once again, this remaster could have been great with a bit more care.

The most recent installment in the Monster Hunter series is the best way to start experiencing thrilling hunts, deep combat mechanics, and a rewarding gameplay loop. It is the friendliest installment to newcomers and a must-play for veterans of the series – if they manage their expectations. I have no doubt that Wilds refines and enhances the existing Monster Hunter experience rather than redefining it. At the end of the day, those who embrace the franchise’s signature challenge and depth will find that this game stands as another solid and satisfying entry in the franchise, even if some mechanics may need some time to get used to.

Overall, Urban Myth Dissolution Center offers a lanky narrative-driven experience, blending eerie folklore tales with the gameplay familiar from other visual novels. The investigative aspect is very discreet. The painfully slow pacing combined with repetitive dialogue, and localization issues result in a not-so-great overall experience. While the game successfully immerses players in the unsettling world of urban legends, it struggles with execution. Those who enjoy visual novels and Japanese ghost stories may find it worthwhile, but players expecting a more interactive detective experience will be disappointed.

Door Kickers 2: Task Force North is the kind of game that fans can easily put more than a hundred hours in without seeing all the content it has to offer. The core mechanics are accessible and quickly explained by the tutorials. And then the game delivers a wide variety of carefully built tactical challenges to solve, even before the Campaigns enter the picture. The top-down view will not be engaging for everyone, even with the more varied and colorful combat areas. The game’s fiction is limited and there’s little in the way of narrative, even in the campaign mode. Door Kickers 2: Task Force North is a great pausable real-time tactical simulation that can get even better if coming updates add extra mechanics to its campaigns.

Coridden has a great core idea. I like how the combat system requires players to constantly shift between human and monster forms to deal with increasingly challenging enemy groups and capable bosses. The entire concept is even better if players manage to bring at least a friend into the game for cooperative action. The world of Heera mixes science-fiction and fantasy elements pretty well but the story and characters fail to stand out. Coridden is worth checking out for the shapeshifting alone and I hope the team at Aftnareld gets a chance to expand on it in a sequel.

Civilization VII is a great 4X experience and every gamer interested in the genre should give it a try. The turn-based mechanics support a wide variety of playstyles and there’s a ton of diversity in leader and civ combinations. The eras system comes across as limited at first, but it basically allows players to play three potentially very different games of Civ in one campaign. A few systems, like religion and internal politics, are limited but will probably get fleshed out in expansions. The end-of-era crisis moments aren’t challenging enough, even on the higher difficulty levels, especially if players pay attention and min-max their cities. Civilization VII changes the formula of the series in interesting ways, although it needs balancing and a better user interface as quickly as possible.

The Executive - Movie Industry Tycoon is a good movie-making business simulation that doesn’t do anything particularly original. The setup is simple, and the movie-making progress has been distilled into a loop that gives gamers crucial decisions to make. The experience isn’t turn-based but manages to successfully create the same feeling of “just one more” movie. The presentation, with its bright colors and easy-to-understand interface, adds to the immersion. Over time, the mechanical limitations and the repetitive nature become clearer. The Executive - Movie Industry Tycoon works best in small doses and as long as players see the process of making a movie as more than a series of choices to repeat until they get the expected result.

Go Home Annie is a well-plotted psychological thriller that makes good use of the SCP Foundation universe. Our protagonist is fully realized, and the core mystery is engaging, with memorable characters and a few nice twists. Even better, the focus is not on jump scares and the developers work hard to create an atmosphere of subtle horror. Sneaking sections aside, gameplay is decent if predictable. Engaging with anomalies is a highlight and I wanted the game to feature a wider array. Go Home Annie shows how the SCP Foundation fictional universe can be used in the video gamer space, especially if the development team focuses on narrative and atmosphere.

Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector is a great game for anyone who appreciates a complex science-fiction universe, well-rounded characters, and existential musings. The new Sleeper is a great protagonist and the rest of the cast, even those with small roles, are well-written. The dice-focused gameplay has been enhanced with new mechanics, some designed to increase the challenge level, that sometimes feel unnecessary. Players annoyed by the dice rolls and the peril associated with them should play on easy and enjoy the narrative. The game, especially when players aren’t focused on one of the major drives, uniquely mixes story, tension, and a sense of discovery. Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector doesn’t offer massive innovation but perfects an already effective combination of narrative and gameplay.

Creo God Simulator’s mix of city building and god powers is an intriguing one but the game struggles to make either of them interesting in the long run. The Creostrider is limited to lightning and rain when the campaign starts, and the willpower costs associated with upgrades are very high. The economic simulation works but doesn’t feature any innovative elements. Players who are willing to push past the early game will find extra complexity as they have to juggle more buildings and decide what resources to prioritize. Creo God Simulator needs more mechanics and an extra game speed but it offers a relaxed experience for players who are ready to smite down villagers once in a while.

ICBM: Escalation is a complex game with good real-time strategy mechanics that asks players to overcome existential angst. Winning, after the nukes start flying across the globe, is possible but it involves the death of tons of abstracted-out people. Still, the title makes it compelling to both plan the nuclear annihilation of others and to try and minimize losses. Make sure to play through the tutorial first and it’s a good idea to first engage with the campaign and its more limited scenarios. Standoff and Blitz offer a ton of variety both in terms of setup and potential strategies. ICBM: Escalation is a big game that allows players to set up a variety of scenarios and test out many ways to manage a world-ending nuclear exchange.

Age of Darkness: Final Stand has solid mechanics that will appeal to gamers who are looking for an experience similar to They Are Billions. It is fun to juggle the dual needs of building a thriving settlement to get all the resources needed to outfit a capable military and build up fortifications that can stand up to hundreds of monsters. There are plenty of heroes and associated strategies for players to mold their playstyle around. The title’s biggest problems are the limited world-building and the drab campaign. Age of Darkness: Final Stand rewards preparation and risk-taking and will satisfy gamers looking for massive and tense battles.

Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles is a nostalgic throwback that fails to transcend its origins. For those who grew up playing the original, it offers a bittersweet reminder of the early 2000s, warts and all. Yet, as a remaster, it falls short of expectations, offering little more than a cosmetic update to a flawed but beloved classic. For fans of Star Wars and retro gaming, it may be worth a visit, but newcomers and casual players are unlikely to find much to enjoy in this uneven return to a galaxy far, far away.