Firewatch doesn't provide the same emotional heights or satisfying conclusion you'd expect from such a story-heavy game, but Campo Santo definitely shows promise with their debut project. Even if it won't have you reaching for the tissues by the end, this woodland walking simulator still provides a pretty great way to burn through an otherwise unoccupied afternoon.

Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia aims to focus the Total War series. Instead of a grand chunk of history to explore, it drills down to some specific decades, with a much smaller map. At the end of the day though, you still need to love the real-time strategy play for the Total War series. If you do, Thrones of Britannia is an experience that tries not to suck up all of your time and energy.

If you're looking for anything measurably different than your prior experiences with the series, though, The Pre-Sequel won't satisfy. And this lack of ambition only serves to disappoint: there's a fantastic game buried in here, somewhere, if only its caretakers would perform a serious overhaul.

The story campaign is a wonderful starbound adventure that'll make you feel like the starship captain many of us have always wanted to be. Unfortunately, it offers a done-in-one kind of 30+ hour adventure, with a lack meaningful choices.

Despite a new developer at its helm, Shadow of the Tomb Raider ends up feeling like more of the same. The new additions to stealth are great; the bow continues to be one of the best in all of video games. Then guns enter combat and the self-reflective story falls flat, making Shadow sometimes a chore to get through. The puzzles in those tombs are pretty spectacular though. I guess she really is the Tomb Raider now.

The Surge 2 is a better game than its predecessor in many ways, and shouldn’t be overlooked in a growing crowd of soulslikes. Pathfinding can still be a bit vague like its predecessor, but the dense environments are fun to explore and complement its weighty combat and robust gear upgrade system. Deck 13 polished what made the first Surge a decent B-tier game and doubled down on what it's good at, showing us how a good developer can learn and evolve from release to release.

Mario Tennis Aces has a lot more in common with fighting games than anything else. Zone Shots and Special Shots are basically the equivalent of an expertly-executed combo or special move, and consequently, can render a point to feel cheaply won in a flash. With no ranked mode available or cosmetic rewards to earn, there's not much to really keep players coming back to it either. Online Tournament and Free Play are fine and scratch the tennis itch, but fail to incite a competitive spirit. Overall with Mario Tennis Aces' lackluster (though sometimes exciting) Adventure Mode, finally-stable online modes, and the unique characterizations of every character, there's a solid package here, even if it doesn't feel like it has legs for the long term.

Hohokum is a different kind of game that prizes aimless interaction and exploration above completing specific objectives. It's a title that brings together a cute, minimal art style and a great soundtrack to create a zen experience. It's worth a play, but not everyone will appreciate its strengths.

Absolver comes extremely close to being an amazing game with its deep 1v1 melee combat and unpredictable player encounters, but where it falters is in, well, nearly everything else. The world feels lifeless. When more than one fighter joins a battle, battling becomes frustrating and clunky. There's a lot of potential with Absolver. But unfortunately, it's not 100 percent of the way there yet.

Ground Zeroes is definitely fun while it lasts, and it offers an interesting taste of what is to come in Phantom Pain. As appetizers go, it's terrific. Just don't expect a full meal.



IO Interactive continues Hitman's reboot with another sprawling level that doesn't disappoint. Even if its episodic nature doesn't feel completely necessary, each dose of content will keep you plenty busy until the next one arrives.

Donut County is an excellent concept executed with pizzazz, personality, and an unexpectedly salient message at its core. While the end came abruptly and left me wanting more, like an endless mode or bigger levels to swallow things in, I can't deny the great time I had with what's there.

It's a bit of a shame, then, that GT Sport feels more like one of the old Prologue releases than a full-on entry in the series. Like I said at the top of this review, the game is fabulous, but there's just not quite enough of it. I'm sure that Polyphony Digital will add new cars, tracks, and events going forward, and it'll be interesting to see how Sport Mode evolves over time, but the bottom line is that right now, GT Sport feels more like an appetizer than a main course. It's exquisitely-crafted and phenomenally tasty, but leaves you wanting more.

Episode 1 is all intro, giving you a look at Max's powers and her supporting cast, but not much else. There's hints of bigger things on the horizon, but neither issue is immediate within Episode 1. I'm intrigued, but Episode 2 needs to give me a stronger reason to finish all five episodes.

The effort that DICE has put into the visuals pays off in one of the best-looking games of the year. But every facet of the game is hurt by the lack of variety in the environments, vehicles, weapons, and even enemies. It's a startlingly limited package made more disappointing by the fact that the actual gameplay is really fun. It may reach its potential in a year; but for now, it's one more potentially great game sabotaged by what appears to be a cynical marketing plan.

Onrush makes a bid to revive the arcade racing genre with this wonderfully unique title. It's a little bit Motorstorm, a little bit Burnout, a little bit SSX. It's a beautiful game, with a selection of amazing tracks full of jumps, drops, and takedowns. Onrush is at times too chaotic and busy, but in the end it's damned exciting.

If you're an anime or Aquaplus fan, this game is pure fanservice on a disc -- but even if you're not, this is still an enjoyable and accessible fighting game, albeit one that lacks a good training mode to ease newcomers into its quirky ways of doing things.

Overall, the Evil Within is solid and it definitely has some great moments, but poorly-implemented mechanics and a bland story bring down the overall package. Survival horror fans should pick it up, but others may want to wait until the price drops a bit.

Concrete Genie is certainly easy on the eyes and ears, with brilliant colors popping out of the screen and a light, airy score to coaxe life out of your paintings. It even successfully switches around the perspective of a strained parent-child relationship compared to what we've seen in other games. Unfortunately the monotonous nature of everything in between creating Genies, from dodging bullies to dousing Denska with Super Paint, drags it down.

Like Roll7's first game, Not a Hero is light on overall mechanics: It's a cover-based side-scrolling shooter stripped down to its bare minimum. That helps the game rip along, as you and the BunnyLord slide and murder your way into power. The humor may fall flat for some and there's a bit of repetition, but Not a Hero is a ton of fun.

Night School Studios have made hell intriguing and complex, with punchy dialog and relatable characters, be it human or demonic. The humor and writing is where Afterparty shines the most, breathing life into every character it touches—be it short and sarcastic, or emotional and reverent. Like the Beastie Boys' "Fight for Your Right (To Party)," what seems like dumb entertainment can evolve into something a lot more meaningful if you're willing to look beneath the surface.

GRID Autosport combines interesting cars, entertaining tracks, excellent AI, and a quality handling engine to deliver a terrific racing experience. Unfortunately its career mode lacks depth and isn't particularly engaging.

Push Me Pull You is a simple, yet effective local multiplayer title that's a breeze to pick up and play. Its bizarre, yet competitive gameplay quickly gets players yelling at one another - whether they're friend or foe - making it an ideal, and potentially noisy party game. The lack of online multiplayer and single-player mode does limit its appeal somewhat, but if you're the kind of person who often hosts gaming parties, check it out.

Resident Evil Revelations 2 might not move the series forward, but, at the same time, it isn't at all the cheap cash-in it easily could have been.

Although it's slightly rough around the edges, and packs the occasional bug, Sleeping Dogs is nevertheless a gripping and thoroughly entertaining Hong Kong action movie in game form.

Shovel Knight Showdown takes the popular indie platformer series and turns it into a four-player arena battler, with great results. With a large amount of unlockable content, in-game challenges, and solo modes, it's a deceptively robust package that has the potential to be a long-term party staple. Shovel Knight Showdown is great even if you've never played the original games.

Modern audiences, though, will still have to overlook some serious rough edges to find out what the big deal is.

Observation has no trouble grabbing you from the go, with gripping central mysteries and questions that demand answers. Painstaking progress through even the simplest commands and instructions counteract any sense of progress in Observation, and ultimately dilutes and cheapens the experience.