A lack of cohesion hurts Black Ops 4. Playing through every mode is rewarding in its own right, but it doesn’t feel like you’re working toward anything in the long run. Unlocking skins and parts in multiplayer has no effect on the other modes. Blackout only dishes out rewards to the most skilled players who can pull off a victory. And Zombies is full of so many extraneous options that only hardcore fans will get invested in.

While the bosses are truly wonderful monstrosities to behold, the most frightening thing presented in Sinner is a game that’s damned to live with few original ideas.

This isn’t the most expansive or intense game you can play on the Switch, but brings great local multiplayer features and enough innovative mechanics to justify the price of admission.

Forsaken doesn’t fundamentally change Destiny. It adds the best story and mission structure in the franchise and makes core social features more compelling to engage with. Only time will tell how deep the enthusiasm for Forsaken will run, but after a week with the expansion, it’s hard not to be impressed with how Bungie has managed to push Destiny 2 forward.

Open-ended mechanics and a suite of customization options make Shadow of the Tomb Raider an absolute joy to play.

This feels like the most authentic Spider-Man game that’s ever been made. It captures every aspect of the hero and his secret identity that fans have come to love, all while delivering a lengthy experience that feels like a childhood dream of defying gravity finally come to fruition.

Generations Ultimate is a greatest-hits collection that doesn’t go out of the way to re-contextualize why the hits are so great in the first place. While it still provides the thrills that made Monster Hunter huge, it’s hard to argue the series isn’t ready for something else.

Donut County won’t solve or illuminate that massive, multifaceted societal issue, but it will give you a chance to lay back, relax, and throw it down a hole.

Just like a show, the second season has to contend with the apparent success of its predecessor, and it’s clear that the writers on Yakuza 2 may not have known how to extend that deeply personal tale for another 40 hours.

While only one episode in, I feel fully invested in where The Walking Dead goes from here. Clementine’s story still holds a lot of intrigue, and her watching her grow makes it easy to overlook how much of this episode is simply setting up the pieces for what is sure to be a devastating sprint to the finish line.

It’s this mix of chaotic misery and joy that makes Overcooked 2 a dish best served bold.

It’s impossible not to recognize the polish and promise held in this short-but-sweet package. Especially as a first project, the game lays a great foundation. Fans of the genre will absolutely have a delightful, worthwhile time with Semblance.

For fans of frantic, intense shooters with a layer of customization and random elements, it would be hard not to recommend Mothergunship.

Unfortunately, the act of doing all this research and genetic splicing amounts to the same level of involvement as a mobile clicker game. It’s just plain tedious. No one is saying that science has to be exhilarating, but it should at least feel more fulfilling than snoozing your morning alarm clock.

Your first impressions of Sushi Striker probably won’t do enough justice to the surprising depth hidden within. While it can feel derivative of the genre at times, there really is a great hook hidden in the core systems.

State of Decay 2 is simply so full of bugs that it would make even Bethesda on a bad day blush, and it routinely puts a damper on its players’ investment, whether it be through architectural glitches, poor A.I. (like in the case of Mandy), or just a failure to load the appropriate materials to finish an objective.

Labo has me thinking about what else is possible with the Switch and, impressively, managed to make the console feel even more amazing.

Though it isn’t perfect, the game excels at nearly everything it sets out to do. Full of genuine surprises, thrilling action, and emotionally grounded in almost every moment, this God of War is easily the best entry in a long series that had no right to reinvent itself so well.

This game stands out as an exceptional entry in a series that has consistently delivered action-movie thrills. If you’ve felt series fatigue creeping in with recent entries, Far Cry 5 is just the antidote you need. It’s an incredible game. Play it. Love it. Just don’t get brainwashed by the cult.

I wish the makers of Detective Pikachu made more bold choices, especially early on. I wish they would have infused every scene with even more personality. But when the plot works, it works. Reading-age kids will probably enjoy it, as will Pokémon diehards. But for everyone else, other games offer more pleasures more quickly and more often. Sorry, Detective. Maybe your story will turn out better on the big screen.

This lack of confidence is the ultimate undoing of Survive’s story. For every unique idea the game presents, it almost immediately backpedals into a generic, played-out conceit.

The experience is meditative and relaxing, with no real combat, and Fe feels unlike anything else because of it.

While this PS4 remake might not be the best way ever to experience Team Ico’s timeless classic, it offers players old and new an experience that simply can’t be replicated anywhere else.

With beautiful maps and strong shooting gameplay at its core, there was potential for this experience to be fantastic. But without serious work and a fundamental relaunch of the progression system, Star Wars Battlefront 2 is an incredible disappointment.

Ultra Sun and Moon‘s new features are great, but nothing groundbreaking.

Ultra Sun and Moon‘s new features are great, but nothing groundbreaking.

With hundreds of Power Moons to collect, an entire wardrobe of outfits that span Mario’s storied history, and no shortage of Easter eggs to uncover, Super Mario Odyssey is one of the most complete packages Nintendo has ever offered.

It plays as a great mix of both, though lacking some of the tactical strategy of a Fire Emblem title. Warriors is a strong addition to the Nintendo Switch’s library of action games, though it suffers a few technical issues in handheld mode. The thick of a battle can be frantic and stressful on the player and the console, but never too much to ruin an exciting, fast-paced experience.