Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar takes an older title that is far from being a series favourite and refines it into something that fans are sure to enjoy. Unrestrained from the restrictions of the Nintendo DS and with a new lease of life thanks to new features, refinements, and an overhauled presentation, Grand Bazaar finally manages to live up to its full potential.

It’s one of the most gorgeous, creative, and satisfying games of 2025 and has effortlessly clawed its way to becoming my frontrunner for Game of the Year.

Sword of the Sea brought me to tears at one point. It’s not something I can spoil, because I would implore anyone who will ever play this to experience this particular moment without any foreknowledge. It’s a short journey that took me a smidge over three hours to complete, but heck, what a stupidly enjoyable three hours those were.

Drag x Drive isn’t destined to be the next big Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive, but it remains one hell of a compelling case for its underused mouse controls and is a truly original sports title. It’ll take some time to get used to its oddball pacing and unorthodox mechanics, but once you’ve found your wheels on the court it’s hard to pull yourself away.

By having a healthier roster, slightly tweaked combat, and two of the best arcs in the whole series, The Hinokami Chronicles 2 still stands as a worthy sequel, and one that I hope is surpassed even more by the inevitable third game that has a hell of a lot of heavy lifting to do by finishing off the whole series.

Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound is so damn good that I would have been sad when it ended, no matter how long that took. The Game Kitchen has done an incredible job mixing the best elements of both generations of Ninja Gaiden, while adding enough new to make it stand out as its own take on the series. It’s easily one of the best games in the series, and Ninja Gaiden 4 (as well as Shinobi: Art of Vengeance) is going to have a hell of a challenge surpassing it.

From building your base to fighting off an endless horde of ladybird larvae, Grounded 2 is very much more Grounded, and some will likely question why this is a sequel and not an expansion to the original. But if you look beyond the superficial similarities, you’ll see a sequel that’s far more confident in itself. This isn’t an experiment for Obsidian anymore, it’s a full-blown project that’s getting the care and attention it deserves, with a bigger story, bigger enemies, and a bigger world to explore. We may be small, but I have very big expectations for Grounded 2. [Early Access Review]

The separate districts feel distinct and while they’re not interesting to explore per se, they do provide a pleasant backdrop as you go from race to race. In the end, I was just hunting for more ridiculous bike upgrades, including a frame that replaced my sleek bike with a massive hotdog. Wheel World isn’t everything I’ve ever wanted in a cycling game, but I appreciate all its polish - the sort of chill game you stick on for a couple of hours in the evening, do some races, and call it a day.

There’s plenty to enjoy about Wuchang, but it is not a game for the casual soulslike enjoyer. It’s a game for the soulslike sickos. I’m usually right there alongside them, but frustrations upon frustrations sour the whole experience.

As someone who’s really enjoyed the AI series and loved each entry in Zero Escape, No Sleep for Kaname Date felt like the perfect hybrid for those who love weird mysteries and puzzle games. Despite the pervasive perversion from Kaname Date himself, the puzzles were fun and the story was wild enough to get me to forgive and forget in the name of a killer visual novel.

Hunter x Hunter: Nen x Impact might not be a looker and would be laughed out the door for more lore-focused anime games, but it manages to just about come around as soon as you sit down to play it. Eighting’s incredible fighting prowess is doing all of the heavy lifting here and, while it’s a shame the low-budget hampers Nen x Impact from being a top-tier game, it’s still a good time. Just don’t expect to learn anything about the series if you’re a newcomer.

I’m old enough to have grown up with unforgiving games, and so I can appreciate a project that goes against the grain at the risk of alienating modern audiences. Even coming in as a genre appreciator, I felt alienated by Shadow Labyrinth. It’s an example of bold game design in a market that becomes more and more risk-averse by the second, and though I hated it at times, I love what Shadow Labyrinth is, and all the respect and admiration for Namco’s video game history that went into it.

Donkey Kong Bananza is a fantastic platformer with a lot of ideas hidden inside of its barrels, but falls short of the perfection it aims for by playing a little safe. Though still a great experience for Nintendo fans, I don't think its shadow will loom as large over the Switch 2 as Super Mario Odyssey did for the original console. It's just a good honest video game, and sometimes that's enough.

Mecha Break is kind of like a beautiful 8oz filet mignon from the fanciest restaurant in town, with a thick layer of Heinz ketchup splattered on top. Sure, you can scrape off the ketchup and still enjoy the steak, but it would be a lot better if the ketchup just wasn’t there at all.

All in all, Nightdive has done right by System Shock 2, and with this remaster, the next generation of players can enjoy this classic with all of the bells and whistles of a modern release: It's a net good for gaming, and, as a result, something worth doing.

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is a hard game to quantify, with Kojima Productions eager to question our expectations and hurl curveballs at every turn. At its heart, it’s an experience about delivering packages and forging connections across a post-apocalyptic world, but play it for just a few hours, and you’ll see it’s so much more than that.

Rematch has good bones. It’s full of energy, raw and unbridled. But it’s a rough diamond, and rougher than most. The game has serious issues that border on rendering the game completely unfun. But if players stick around for long enough for developer Sloclap to polish those defects, to improve the servers and make goalkeeping feel responsive, then we might just have something here. At the moment, it’s a bit of a mess. But it’s a mess that keeps you coming back, that forces you to play ‘one more match’ in case it’s the one where you finally net a hat trick of bicycle kicks. And it’s a game I’d prefer to play over EA FC any day.

Its compelling early story beats can’t save it from its repetitive battle system and lack of meaningful connections, and I came away from my experience feeling like this was a rare miss for a company that is usually so consistent. It’s certainly a weird choice for a remaster.

From the masterful writing depicting earnest and meaningful character stories, to the organic design and dating mechanics, and a legendary voice cast to top it all off, Date Everything succeeds in creating a delightful experience that showcases an immense amount of love for video games and the stories and characters they are capable of giving us.

It’s a shame this one misses the mark so widely, because there’s a really strong foundation here. Maybe it would work better as a PvP game, or maybe it just needed to ease up on the story and focus on delivering more variety. The first couple of runs of Battle Train feel magical, until you realize that’s pretty much it, and the rest of the game is just a lousy version of Archer and a lot of trips down the same old tracks.

It reminds me of the games I loved as a kid, and without all the dark patterns modern games use to keep players hooked (and paying), it’s certainly one of the most ethical multiplayer games you can play this year.

Lies of P: Overture is just an extension of an already terrific game, and that’s great. It’s almost nostalgic, reminding me of a decade ago when DLC was the norm, and not every game was bombarded with monthly updates or roadmaps. It’s a great expansion that attempts to give Lies of P its own identity, and while it doesn’t really improve or build upon the features that you’ve grown used to over the course of dozens of hours trawling the streets of Krat, it didn’t need to. I’m more than happy with a second helping of Lies of P.

Tron: Catalyst’s fatal flaw is that it plays everything overly safe, and never rises too far above ‘fine’. It’s terrified of you getting lost in an excellent world that could have been ripe for exploring, and its systems aren’t developed enough to make combat or looping ever feel engaging. It never quite shakes off the feeling of being a budget Hades; it’s, at the very least, a fine way to kill a few hours, even if you forget about it immediately after.

This is the story of a singular man I cannot recommend enough. And who knows, perhaps along the way you might even learn something about yourself.

It's mildly amusing to rattle Joy-Con like maracas, but a Nintendo table setter should strive to be better than 'mildly amusing'. And that's the strangest part here - Nintendo has not failed with Welcome Tour. It has succeeded in its ambitions. But if the Switch 2 is to match its predecessor, those ambitions had better grow, and quickly.

Siege X is a bold, uneven evolution that both honors and undercuts what made Rainbow Six special in the first place. It’s more polished and more ambitious, but also less focused, less grounded, and occasionally less fun. Whether you love it or hate it will depend entirely on what you want from Siege in its tenth year.

World is more playful, more unpredictable, and more willing to give players all the toys they need to have fun and put the pedal to the metal. Even days after launch as the only proper exclusive title for Nintendo Switch 2, there is a foundation here I cannot wait to see iterated upon.

This is an excellent showcase of what makes the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles so beloved, and as a fan, I’m so happy to see the turtles finally get the kinds of games they deserve.