The Plucky Squire is a brilliantly creative little game that will hook you with its unique presentation and phenomenally full-of-life art and reel you in with nostalgic gameplay and great characters. It is fun for all ages. I struggle to think of anyone who won’t find at least one thing they enjoy about The Plucky Squire, making it a game that is definitely worth checking out if it’s on your radar.

Caravan SandWitch isn’t a game to play for a lot of action or crazy, tension-filled moments. It isn’t going to challenge you beyond a simple environmental puzzle and a push to go exploring, and it doesn’t have to. It is a simple game, one that works best in its quiet moments, that just asks you to sit back and enjoy yourself as you take a delightful little road trip across a strangely hopeful, near-apocalyptic planet. It’s perfect for a rainy day when you need a quick break from stress or simply something to shut your brain off after a long day of work, and for that, I certainly recommend it.

Reka is a fantastic new addition to the survival craft/farming sim genre, with an incredibly unique setting and great original mechanics. It stands out with its themes and gameplay and is a great title worth checking out, even in its early access state. [Early Access Review]

Hollowbody is the best horror game of the year, standing out with its remarkably good use of tension and incredible atmosphere. Clocking in at about three hours, your short time with this game will surely be memorable, tense, and terrifying.

Age of Mythology: Retold is a faithful remaster of a classic RTS game, featuring improved graphics, UI, and great quality of life changes. Whether you’re new to the franchise or a returning fan, this buffed-up classic is worth checking out.

Though weak in some places, The Casting of Frank Stone is still a good story set in the Dead By Daylight universe and left me excited for the possibility of more games and stories coming out in this setting.

Deadlock is an exciting addition to a genre that hasn’t seen, in my opinion, an up-and-comer with a real fighting chance in a while. Deadlock is sure to be popular, thanks to its twist on gameplay, fun setting, and great characters, if not outright give League of Legends a run for its money. [Early Access Review]

Spectre Divide stands out from other games in the genre, making it a solid competitor for the crown of Tactical Shooter King, at least to someone like me who doesn’t know much about the genre itself.

Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2 is a game for fans of the franchise and newcomers alike, providing great cinematic action gameplay and genuine fun that can be experienced alone or with a group. It’s my favorite game of the year so far, and try as I might, I can’t find anything to complain about. It’s just plain good.

Crypt Custodian takes a relatively dark plot and makes it whimsical, showing an at-times scary yet mostly wholesome version of the afterlife. With solid, familiar Metroidvania mechanics, great art, and fun characters, Crypt Custodian is sure to win you over.

Though I have criticisms about the game’s writing and mechanics, Star Wars Outlaws does an incredible job of immersing you in the Star Wars universe and will keep you at least somewhat invested in its storytelling. If you’re a fan of the Star Wars formula and want an open-world game set in the Outer Rim, Star Wars Outlaws is the game for you.

Farewell North is a heartwarming game that shows, in a literal sense, how a beloved pet can bring the light back in our darkest moments.

Tactical Breach Wizards uses great writing, genuinely well-executed humor, and subversive takes on genre gameplay and pairs it with a super unique setting to make what is one of my favorite new titles.

The game could really expand on this area by adding more scenery in the nature areas, perhaps some animals, and giving the town a more lived-in, bustling feeling. While it may seem like a minor criticism, I think it could go a long way to make Mika and the Witch’s Mountain a better game than it is now. [Early Access Review]

For an early access title, Dawn of Defiance has a lot of promise. It goes a unique route for a survival crafting game, giving you the powers of a god as you progress through the game and having a unique setting that I haven’t yet seen in the genre. If the game could simply improve on its combat, adding in a more combo-oriented system, maybe adding in more combat skills and weapon sets, it could be a fantastic entry into the genre. While not totally necessary, I’d also like to see the game swap out its humanoid models and gear sets for more visually interesting ones, adding to the game’s unique flavor in visual areas where it, unfortunately, feels a little bland. [Early Access Review]

It certainly has the concept for it. However, to do so, it needs to work on its balance and change up how aliens play the game and how players fight back against them. As it exists, the game is frustrating at worst and plain not scary at best. [Early Access Review]

The formula is solid and straightforward enough that something would have to be very wrong for me to find something to criticize. Though still in early access, I struggle to imagine just how far Preserve can really go from here. The game is simple yet solid, and I think that’s just fine for its $12 price point. [Early Access Review]

Deathbound is a unique entry into the Soulslike genre, with a cool, grim setting and unique ideas that set it apart from other titles. Ambitious as it may be, its character writing leaves something to be desired, and aspects of the mechanical design keep Deathbound from its full potential.

Stormgate seems like an interesting game, albeit one that has a bit of work to be done before it leaves Early Access. The game needs to work on its presentation of information, both visually and through in tutorial sources. It also could stand to bolster its factions with more unique and interesting designs, with the Infernal Host standing out as the most interesting of three otherwise bland factions. [Early Access Review]

Creatures of Ava surprised me with a vast and beautiful world, an exciting take on pacifism, and great characters. A game about exploration, conservation, and wonder, you’re sure to enjoy your visit to Ava. Remember to take lots of pictures.

Closer The Distance is a game that will make you feel. It reminds you of some of life’s saddest moments and grief, as well as about healing and the depth that a community can have. It may be rough going down like bitter medicine, but you’ll feel better in the end.

Thalassa: Edge of the Abyss tasks you with solving an incredibly engaging mystery in an incredibly unique and terrifying deep sea setting. A fantastic story and heartwrenching ghosts await you in this thalassophobic thriller.

Space For Sale is an interesting title, albeit not quite what I expected. If you’re into the idea of building towns on the galactic frontier with friends, this game may be for you, although you might find certain early access features to be wanting. If, however, you wanted to open up a farm and physically terraform an alien planet, Space For Sale will unfortunately leave you wanting, though we may see a shift in that direction as the game sees further development.

Minds Beneath Us is an excellent visual novel, telling a heart-wrenching story with a ton of unique sci-fi concepts. Fans of visual novels and great stories are in for a treat with this dystopian treat.

7 Days to Die, in my opinion, is dated in a lot of ways. Some of the mechanics feel unnecessarily tedious, the game doesn’t look incredible, and the engine is undoubtedly on its last legs. In other ways, however, the game is revolutionary, featuring a core mechanic loop that I am shocked no other games have replicated and a surprising amount of player freedom in its gameplay. If nothing else, 7 Days to Die will quickly become the next Stardew Valley or Rogue, inspiring a variety of new games and becoming the forefather of its own genre.

Farlands seems to have a long way to go before it leaves Early Access and becomes a full game. However, I think it has a lot of promise. If the game interests you and you want to support the developers as they continue to flesh out the game, purchasing it in Early Access definitely isn’t a bad idea. Otherwise, I would give the game time, but I recommend keeping a close eye on it as it evolves throughout its development. [Early Access Review]

The Star Named EOS is heartwarming, heartwrenching, beautifully designed, and pleasantly short. It tells a great story with clever puzzles and never overstays its welcome. Fans of puzzle games or those just looking to experience this game’s incredible story will find a wealth of enjoyment from The Star Named EOS and may be left wanting more.

CONSCRIPT is incredibly atmospheric, with great ideas and loving homages to the survival game genre. While the tension wasn’t quite there for me, I’m sure others will find it in this otherwise incredible game.