Those without pre-existing attachments are probably going to feel a bit lost here, and it’s hard to recommend the games to that sort of person as a result. That said, if you are a fan of this manga/anime, I think you’ll enjoy what’s on offer here. It’s all pretty modest in scope, but the characters are served well enough to satisfy. I think those who weren’t pleased with the canon ending of the series will find some additional joy here as you can choose a different path for our hapless hero. Not an especially ambitious or intriguing take on the genre, but good enough.

Those without pre-existing attachments are probably going to feel a bit lost here, and it’s hard to recommend the games to that sort of person as a result. That said, if you are a fan of this manga/anime, I think you’ll enjoy what’s on offer here. It’s all pretty modest in scope, but the characters are served well enough to satisfy. I think those who weren’t pleased with the canon ending of the series will find some additional joy here as you can choose a different path for our hapless hero. Not an especially ambitious or intriguing take on the genre, but good enough.

If you’re into the idea of a superhero-flavored turn-based tactical RPG, I can happily report that Capes won’t let you down. It brings powers into combat in sensible ways, and goes the extra mile of making sure things like cooperation between heroes is represented properly too. There are aspects of it that could use more polish, and you can feel where the budget perhaps wasn’t up to the ambition, but the meat of the game delivers quite nicely.

Whether you’re new to the game or are simply relishing a return trip to Rogueport, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is a fantastic way to experience one of Mario’s grandest and strangest adventures. Even as someone who has enjoyed the quirky charms of the last few Paper Mario games, I must admit that replaying the game via this version has made me pine for a new game with a similar sensibility to it. I don’t know if we’ll ever see that or not, but for now this superb remake more than satisfies.

There’s a half-decent game buried somewhere in Arcadia: Colony, but the unreliable controls and overall bad feel of the fundamental mechanics make it hard to find. If you’re incredibly patient and find the idea of a character-swapping Metroidvania particularly appealing, you might enjoy it more than I did. Nevertheless, I find this difficult to recommend.

If you’ve enjoyed the recent string of retro arcade throwbacks that have been brought to the Switch by Flynns Arcade, you’ll want to look into Goliath Depot. It has a nice presentation, the gameplay mechanics are unusual and easy to grasp, and it has a lot of replay value packed into it. Chasing your way up a leaderboard is what keeps arcade-style games going, and Goliath Depot nails that aspect quite well.

I’ll certainly give Inti-Creates some credit here. Umbraclaw is trying some things outside of the developer’s usual wheelhouse, and they are interesting things. It almost gets there, but it ultimately feels caught between being some kind of roguelite and being a more linear action game. I also think the way the difficulty works here is a bit too manipulative in a way that doesn’t feel good. With all that said, Umbraclaw is still a nice-looking game that is very playable, and even if it fails trying something I will at least commend it for trying.

Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is an excellent remake, but not one to be taken lightly. In a change from Digital Eclipse’s usual documentary approach, this remake simply offers the original game with a fresh lick of paint and a few new optional features to make it more convenient (not easier!) to play. This is, at its heart, the same merciless dungeon crawling RPG it has always been. Whether that’s a challenge you want to tackle in the modern age is up to you, but there’s no better way to do so than through this fine effort.

SKALD: Against the Black Priory is a lovely surprise of an RPG. After a bit of getting used to it and some visual tweaks, I enjoyed my time with the game on Steam Deck using touch controls. If you’ve wanted an old-school RPG experience that’s built for today without compromising on the vision but one with some accessibility options, SKALD: Against the Black Priory is for you.

When I first played this year’s Alone in the Dark re-imagining, I thought it was a very good but flawed experience. After this week’s massive update, I’m glad I waited a bit longer to do my review because it is now in a much better state, and is worth your time even if you never played the original. Just be aware of the visual cutbacks needed to get this running on Steam Deck. I liked it enough to get it on PS5 for a replay.

Little Kitty, Big City is a game I didn’t think I’d enjoy much after a trailer, but I’m glad I got to play it on Steam Deck. It is a perfect game for portable play, and I have almost no major complaints about how it plays on Steam Deck. If you enjoy games like Untitled Goose Game or just want a fun and short interactive adventure, Little Kitty, Big City is for you.

Witch and Lilies is pretty excellent right now, but it looks like it will be worth buying in about a month or two based on its roadmap once more fixes and enhancements arrive. It plays well on Steam Deck already aside from some minor issues, and is shaping up to be a solid release for fans of yuri and dungeon RPGs. I can’t wait to see how it feels in a few months when I revisit it.

Ouros is a relaxing and great puzzle game that feels like something we’d see hit iPad a decade ago in a good way. It plays perfectly on Steam Deck with full touchscreen support, and has enough accessibility in its progression and hint system to be a great introduction to puzzle games as well.

If you have even the smallest shred of love in your soul for story-based games, play 1000xRESIST. Some of the best games of this sort feel like getting a fine dinner in a fancy restaurant. This one is like getting the whole damned menu brought to your table, plus a slice of fruit cake because there’s always room for dessert. An absolute masterpiece, and I am grateful that I got to experience it. Hekki grace.

This is becoming a pattern with EGGCONSOLE releases, but Golvellius is a cool game and it’s nice to see this MSX2 version made more accessible to players around the world. Unfortunately, the fact that the game in question hasn’t been localized from its original Japanese form means that a lot of folks who might otherwise enjoy playing the game will find themselves frustrated at not being able to make progress. If you’re feeling adventurous and patient, it’s worth the trip.

NecroBouncer has an interesting premise that it doesn’t do as much with as you might like, but it’s a perfectly adequate take on the somewhat well-worn roguelite action genre. My time with it was largely enjoyable, even if I don’t know that I’ll remember much about it in the long run. If you’re looking for a cheeky little roguelite to pass a few days with, this will certainly fit the bill.

Mullet Madjack is plain fantastic. It looks gorgeous, feels amazing, and is a sublime boomer shooter with an aesthetic we don’t usually see in the genre. If you have even the smallest interest in boomer shooters and like the 90s anime aesthetic, this one is worth getting. I recommend downloading the demo on Steam Deck and enabling gyro controls to see how you find the controls though as that’s the only aspect that might not work for everyone.

Arctic Eggs. What a game. What an experience. In this super busy month of quality indie games hitting non stop, I think Arctic Eggs will stick with me for a long time. While it isn’t ideal on Steam Deck out of the box, the community control layout made it my favorite way to experience Arctic Eggs. The soundtrack, aesthetic, and vibe are superb here. It’s time to fry eggs and change lives.

Library of Ruina is an incredible, challenging, and long experience with fantastic characters and sublime music on Steam. The console versions have a lovely art and music gallery included with a superb new Japanese voiceover option, but the interface quirks and Switch-specific issues make it hard to recommend easily right now even after two patches. If you have a Steam Deck, play Library of Ruina with the trackpad on that for the current best portable experience.

PO’ed: Definitive Edition is just what it says it is. If you’re going to play the game in any form, this is the best way to do it. Nightdive doesn’t miss often with its KEX Engine reissues, after all. But do you really want to play PO’ed? That’s the difficult question. Even in its era, it wasn’t exactly a barn-burner of a first-person shooter. It’s a very bizarre, unique game, and if that’s your jam then by all means give it a go. Hardly essential reading, but I’m sure someone out there is thrilled to see it.

Idea Factory and Compile Heart have a little lemonade stand that works for them here, and I’m not going to knock them for it. Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution is yet another Neptunia game, and it doesn’t have much going on that we didn’t see in the last couple of action-RPGs in the series. The story is amusing if you’re into meta-humor, and while the whole thing feels like it was made on a meager budget, it’s fine for what it is. This Switch version is more solid than some of the other Neptunia ports on the platform, so if you’re a Neptunia fan looking to take this game on the go, here it is.

In the end Emerald Beyond is another SaGa game that is preaching to the choir, but it’s a choir worth joining if you think you’ve got the patience for it.

As long as you know what you’re getting into, I think you’ll find Musashi vs Cthulhu to be a decent little time-waster. It does what it sets out to do well enough, and although it gets repetitive in a hurry, I think it’s fine for the small snack price it’s selling for.

Qualia is a visual novel that can’t seem to settle on what it wants to be. A sweet little romance with a quirky premise? A piece of science fiction? An excuse for lewd scenes that have been cut from this version? At times it is all of these things, but it fails to nail down any of them to the degree that I would have preferred. It’s not entirely without its charms, but Qualia ultimately doesn’t live up to its potential in any regard.

I think Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes does a good job of carrying out its goal of giving Suikoden fans a new game with a similar sort of appeal. There are some pacing issues here, and its commitment to the bit means those without the necessary nostalgia might feel a little annoyed at times, but overall this is an enjoyable RPG that hits some notes these ears of mine haven’t heard in a while. Unfortunately, this Switch version suffers from too many technical issues to recommend with any real vigor. Play this game, but I wouldn’t play it here unless you really have no other option.

If you’ve never played a Warriors game before, Samurai Warriors 4 DX is superb value and a fantastic game to start with. Some aspects are dated compared to newer Omega Force games and the price should’ve been a bit lower though. That aside, it is incredible to finally have it on PC over a decade later, and it is almost perfect on Steam Deck out of the box. I hope it can be optimized a bit for a locked 60fps because I always love playing Warriors games on a portable, and Samurai Warriors 4 DX on Steam Deck is an amazing version of one of my favorite Warriors games.

Hatsune Miku – The Planet Of Wonder And Fragments Of Wishes is a game I recommend on a big discount if you like Miku. I try to play just about every Hatsune Miku game I can across platforms, and Hatsune Miku – The Planet Of Wonder And Fragments Of Wishes would’ve been easier to recommend if it cost about half of what it does and didn’t have a constant scrolling issue. As a short adventure game for Miku fans, it gets the job done, but the asking price makes it a non starter right now.

INDIKA was a fresh adventure experience that continuously surprised me throughout with how its narrative flowed, and one I’m definitely going to replay on PS5 when it releases there. As a fan of walking simulators, this is one of my favorites in the genre, and I’m just shocked it even exists. It might even be one of my favorite games 11 bit studios has published so far.