Yakuza Kiwami 2 won't make those who haven't clicked with the series yet a believer, but for fans, it's well worth the journey if you don't mind retreading some familiar ground. While the slow middle and Majima side campaign are disappointing, Kiwami 2 is still another solid entry in the Yakuza canon.

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.

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

Juan's second adventure is good enough to stand out in a market of strong contenders. It leans on the harder side of the genre, but it's not vindictive in its difficulty. And the art style and tone go a long way towards endearing you to the game and its world. Much like the first, Guacamelee 2 can stand in the winner's circle with pride.

This debut episode of the final season of Telltale’s The Walking Dead is impressive, if a little formulaic.

There's a lot to like about We Happy Few, with its unique psychedelic dystopian setting and well-developed story, but it's the moment-to-moment action that crashes down on you like a bad dose of Joy. So-so survival elements, the lack of mission variety, frame rate issues, prolific bugs, and tedious stealth and combat will make you want to cook up some Joy for yourself, so that maybe you too can forget the bad stuff and remember only the bright side of things.

If you were a fan of the first Overcooked, I can guarantee you'll find something to love here. With more characters, levels, gimmicks (even if some are on the annoying side), and recipes to dive into (for some reason, Overcooked 2 is really into sushi and dim sum), Overcooked 2 will likely replace the original game in your party game rotation. Just be prepared for a couple of headaches along the way, and some wrecked friendships in your wake.

Dead Cells comes screaming out of its prison cell strong. Things slow down a bit as the progression system and run repetition set in, but the moment-to-moment action stays fantastic all the way through.

Madden 19 is a solid, if occasionally ragged, follow-up to last year's big transition to Frostbite. The improvements to the animation and franchise mode stand out, but Longshot: Homecoming feels like a step back from last year's ambitious introduction. The multitude of interesting but mostly subtle updates ultimately make this an entry that is primarily geared toward hardcore fans of the series.

While Chasm is an indie Metroidvania title using procedural generation, this isn't another roguelike. Instead, Chasm generates a new map with every campaign for re-playable variety. During the campaign the map stays put, promoting exploration and memorization. Chasm is all about getting around: finding new abilities to open a new path forward and overcoming difficult platforming challenges. Chasm might have been outdone in certain aspects during its five years in development, but what's here is still very good.

We’ve seen our characters in a perpetual state of ‘fight or flight’ the entire series, barely pausing to catch their breath before hitting the road again. I don’t feel like I know these characters, which makes it all the more difficult to care about them when the entire world is collapsing in on itself.

Like the previous legacy collections, this is a mix of some absolute masterpieces, some okay games, and some severe missteps. It's missing some features like save states or a rewind function, and a few songs from the original releases are gone completely. The new X Challenge mode also doesn't stand up to Mega Man Legacy Collection's Custom Challenge stages. Still, this a damn good collection for a series that hasn't seen a new entry in 14 years.

Octopath Traveler's attempt to balance new and old JRPG mechanics is impressive, and mostly successful. There's a charming one-of-a-kind title here that opts to talk about eight characters instead of focusing on one team, one world, and one story. Does this unusual method of storytelling work? I think so, but personal preferences will vary. Some over-long boss fights and questionable dedication to certain retro mechanics mar Octopath a bit, but if you own a Switch and love JRPGs, adopt this fluffy, lovely snow leopard of a game for your own.

If you missed out on Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker the first time it was around, then there's no better time to dive in. If you've played it before though, the new offerings of Super Mario Odyssey-themed levels won't be that enticing, unless you have a kid to bring into the fun for co-op.

The awesome environmental destruction returns alongside the hammer, one of the best gaming weapons ever. And the game has been redone in 4K resolution with improved lighting and textures. Unfortunately, the bad stuff still remains: shooting and driving feel floaty, enemy response is tuned too high, and there are a number of glitches present. As such, the remaster merely brings a great game into the modern age, without the improvements that would mark a better re-release.

It's not a bad game, as I never felt like I was gritting my teeth to play it, but it lacks a strong hook to keep you playing. Without that hook, you spend your time noticing all the small ways that the experience lets you down.

The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit is the endearing, heartbreaking tale of a kid who imagines himself to be a superhero. It's not very long at 2 hours tops, but Dontnod Entertainment uses this teaser for Life is Strange 2 to show they still have the stuff to tell a great story. Captain Spirit isn't really a complete story though and you'll leave this experience with more questions. Ones that will likely be answered in the next game.

Ultimately, Jurassic World Evolution could just be better overall. I've had and still have some fun with it, but there needs to be more room for some real creativity and variety in terms of park composition. Despite leaning into its license quite well, Evolution is a downgrade from what Planet Coaster was, and I feel there's a better game somewhat between both titles.

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.

I hope Octo Expansion is at least indicative of the future of the series. One not laser-focused on just multiplayer, one that goes further in enriching its delightfully weird world, one that experiments with Splatoon's unique ink-shooting and platforming quirks. In the meantime, at least we have the doubly charming and frustrating Octo Expansion.

BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle is a solid fighter.

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.

Hours of Darkness is a snack, not a meal.

Although this gives us more of a grounded portrayal of Reid’s character, it makes the game frustrating and overwhelming at times. Vampyr is full of promising concepts, excellent character building, and lifelike communities, but ultimately Reid's bloodlust can't help but get in the way.

An arcade perfect collection of twelve titles across Street Fighter's grand history. Unfortunately, it's missing some of the bells and whistles of their console counterparts and online play is a bit rough. Despite those problems, local play is a winner and the Museum is packed with content showing a real love for the franchise's history. If you know what you're getting into, Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection is a great compilation, just not a perfect one.

While bare-bones on the surface, Dark Souls Remastered is one of the best games of the last 20 years running better than it ever has. New players will find all of the mood, challenge, and tension of the original, and returning vets are given beefier online options and minor tweaks to small details. More importantly, it keeps one of the medium’s best games easily accessible and readily available.

Detroit: Become Human is still marred by some of the issues that plague previous Quantic Dream games. Rough, ham-fisted writing and story pacing that's thrown off at times by the playable sections. I'm also pretty sure that most folks are going to get one of the more unsatisfying endings their first time around. But I like the characters, which more than I could say for the last two games. And when I finished the game, I wanted to jump back in and try out some other choices. Quantic Dream is getting better, even if Detroit: Become Human not on par with some of the better visual novels out there.

If you can deal with a healthy dose of bugs, State of Decay 2 is an extremely satisfying and unpredictable management sim with a solid action-survival game laid on top. The sequel's improved UI, new multiplayer component, and additional maps help it stand out from its predecessor, even if the moment-to-moment is largely the same.