Little Droid was an okay, short experience once I got over a small rage-inducing death cycle that I got myself into. Is it tough? Yes. But is it rewarding? Eh. I am very mediocre on Little Droid and there are only certain gaming enthusiasts I can recommend this to and those are players who want to play all the metroidvanias and those who love a “retro-hard” game. If you aren’t in those camps, this one is likely a pass.

Dungeon Rushers doesn’t do much to break the mold, but it certainly does enough to justify its generous price tag and a recommendation. Though with that said, if it’s gameplay depth that you seek, look elsewhere. The game does indeed become repetitive before its conclusion and there’s a few technical issues within, however, if you can overlook that, there’s heaps of challenging and endearing content to get through.

The Hong Kong Massacre hits all the right mechanical and visual notes and should be considered one of the best in its genre. Great controls, superb style and a cracking soundtrack. However, it has two glaring bugs that detract from the overall quality.

Necro Story made some bold decisions on ways to make the game challenging. The soul-catching mechanic is particularly interesting and adds a unique twist to the gameplay. The variety of characters with random perks and the comical undertone of the story provides a refreshing take on the dark fantasy genre. However, the game’s lack of clear explanations for certain mechanics, like the different coloured souls and plot direction can be frustrating. If you enjoy a mix of real-time and turn-based combat with a spooky humourous story there is plenty of content to be had here.

I was totally underwhelmed with the single player part of Asteroids, until I stumbled upon challenges. Short sharp specific focused game mode. These were exciting, with the fact I had a goal to work toward made playing it more enjoyable.

Cuisineer is a cute, comfy social sim with some Action RPG added in there. That said, this might be one of the most transparent versions of the genre, which does not feel rewarding to unlock new content.

Slave Zero X did not grip me with the story, however, the simplistic game mechanics were a nice change of pace. You move along the area from left to right, you can hack and slash your way through the enemies, there are various enemy types each with its unique attack pattern and weapons. As you can see from the video above the graphics are very “retro” but the developers, Poppy Works have added camera shifts as you move along the levels. This gives this 2D game more visual depth. I personally found some bosses very tricky to beat, add the fact they have no health meter, some battles can be are very frustrating. I did find myself on more than one occasion stuck trying to manoeuvre to the next section. The above “issues” did not take away the fact I did have a blast playing Slave Zero X.

The Spectrum Retreat’s greatest achievement is how engaging, challenging and unnerving the whole experience can be. The drawback however, and the bane of most puzzle games, is that there really isn’t much longevity to it. That said, Dan Smith’s debut project is certainly a game that any fan of the genre should try out, and for his first attempt, Dan shows a great deal of promise for his future in game development.

As one of the few exclusively next-gen games for the Series consoles, Bright Memory is a bit of mixed bag. It runs excellently, with super smooth frame rates and crisp, 4K visuals and some lovely looking (if slightly over-done) effect’s work. The combat is fast and satisfying, and the extra powers can make the whole presentation look like Doom X Crysis on some kind of strong drugs. That it is so short, the character models look decidedly 00’s arcade era, and some bug and glitches rear their heads means it’s not the must play new title it could have been though. Here’s hoping the full fat Bright Memory: Infinite can use this test bed to launch a truly kick ass, next-gen shooter.

Solid puzzle game, with a lovely ink style. Howl is a short, bite sized bit of fun.

This first person shooter was a lovely surprise for me. Controls were tight, visually this game appealed to the retro gamer in me and easy achievements is always a bonus. If you need a game that is just fun without the pressure of mind bending difficulties this is it.

AO Tennis 2 is a greatly improved second instalment to the franchise. Trying to overshoot your hits is a satisfying experience. Career mode is the best part of the game, building your character to be a dominant force and trying to get that world number 1 ranking and winning all 4 Grand Slams. If you are a tennis fan, I would recommend buying this game as you’re unlikely to be disappointed. It’s a shame more big tennis players didn’t put their name into the hat, but with the brilliant editor and the ability to publish your creations this can be overlooked.

Whilst Spirit Roots is not a bad title, it’s also not a title that will give you anything you haven’t seen or got already from any other title in the genre. It’s nice to look at and it might take you a few hours to push through all of the levels, but if you’re looking for anything more than the basics, you won’t find it here. The price point does shine a large positive with this title one of the cheaper new releases on the store, but with numerous other titles on the horizon, there should have been something a little more to Spirit Roots to ensure it stood out as a game you must play.

I’m being a little unfair perhaps; clearly I struggled with the difficulty where others may just revel in it. If you’re of the puzzling mind, I would imagine that you’d get right along with Lake Ridden. The roughly 4 hour run time is just the right length to not over do things or start repeating puzzles too often. The atmosphere is finely tuned to where you’re never quite sure if something may just pop up behind you and the visuals and audio do a great job of sucking you in to the world. The story is quite engaging, though it’s a shame that some of the filler is locked behind those harder box puzzles.

Edge of Sanity has some solid moments and its tributes to HP Lovecraft fiction. It is moodily lit and well designed. There just wasn’t enough to keep me fully committed.

Don’t be put off from the talky interview-centric tenets of Wayward Strand and you will be nicely pampered by a gentle pleasant game of discovery. Speaking to elderlies and hearing them wax lyrical about their relationships with each other does induce some mild entertainment, and the pace is equally as leisurely. There are a few ailments that hold Wayward Strand back from sound bed rest, such as an unnecessarily strict save system, overly-simplistic visuals and its rote minimalistic nature. Yet, Wayward Strand is still a nice and lightly-paced adventure worth undertaking.

If you’re after a good challenge, Hayfever may be up your alley. While the early stages show off it’s unique concept well, unfortunately, the sharp difficulty curve soon brings more frustration than fun.

Clunky Hero is a beautiful mix of platforming and Metroidvania-like action. The mechanics and controls feel fun to play, and the visual style really suits the style the developers are going for. Add in Monty Python-esque jokes and we’ve got a bit of a winner here.

Override 2: Super Mech League changes the formula for the story mode from its predecessor in a way that isn’t my favorite. That doesn’t take away from the stunning visuals this 3D brawler gives us. Unfortunately it seems Override 2: Super Mech League was banking on online play and I had a tough time finding opponents. Luckily bot matches can supplement our need to finish sponsor tasks but ultimately the game could use a bit more life.

Mekabolt+ is a highly enjoyable puzzle platformer styled after those early 90’s titles us older gamers remember fondly. Quick restarts are a blessing, and for some quick and easy action then this is a decent title to check out.

I Saw Black Clouds unfortunately misses the mark more often than not. While the general concept of the story is interesting, messy presentation and confusing, vague stats make it harder to enjoy than it should be. If you’re looking for an enjoyable live action adventure, I’d still recommend checking out The Complex before this.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning is the safe Fable and Oblivion fusion we remember from all those years ago, but it is a little too familiar, and inexplicably has numerous game-breaking bugs and technical hang-ups, despite the lack of truly awe-inspiring presentation or technical requirements. Nevertheless, it is a fun but safe RPG with wonderful combat, great crafting, and repetitive staple RPG quests and gameplay loops. But ultimately, if you still have the original and your Xbox 360, it is not worth it.

EcoGnomix I thought looked like a novel tactical strategy game but it just reiterates the saying looks can be deceiving. It has a lot of charm about it and graphically looks interesting. But the deep difficulty curve will just turn people off.

The bottom line is you should wait whether you’re a new fan or an old fan returning. This Definitive Edition was a sad excuse for a re-release. Visual issues plagued the gameplay making it a frustrating experience with goofy looking models looking worse than the originals. The sounds still hold up and have aged well and there is longevity with these titles as they are brilliant when functioning. I have faith they will continue to update and fix issues, but game developers are getting away with dropping broken games and fixing it later. The delay for the physical releases being pushed back to the 17th shows that they want more time to fix them. The digital launch was a beta test at best and we were the guinea pigs to experiment with. Wait for the inevitable updates to slowly roll out before giving your money to a game company that wanted to swindle loving fans at launch. At least San Andreas is part of Game Pass if looking to test the waters before buying.

A cursory glance at Peaky Blinders: Mastermind might fool you into thinking that it’s a cheap, defective product that rides on the popularity and success of the TV show on which its based. The positive reality though is that once you get your head around its gameplay quirks, you will find a decent but brief foray into a post-World War I plunge into the sneaking thievery of the Peaky Blinders. Yes there are a lot of basic and unfulfilling design choices, and more could’ve been done to immerse you into the Peaky Blinders universe, but what’s here is executed sufficiently well enough to provide several hours of entertainment. You won’t be blown away and you would wish and crave for more substance and intrigue, but Mastermind – whilst not a master – is certainly a handy companion.

Hide and Seek is a small step-up from The Mad Ones, though we do need to see more locations and opportunities to utilize its mechanics in subsequent episodes, in comparison to this. The minor issues with its frame-rate and character animations don’t persist as much as before, but they do hinder the experience to some degree. Regardless, The Council remains unique and interesting enough throughout.

MythForce pulls HARD at the nostalgic strings of those that long for Saturday morning cartoons. The looks are unfortunately far above the gameplay however with the slow progression and broken combat. It’s not so much that it’s near unplayable, just noticeable. I look forward and hope we see more MythForce in the future whether that’s a straight sequel or another genre as long as it uses this amazing look.

The casual baseball fan will assuredly have fun here, while those that are more passionate and hardcore, as many baseball fans are, will be left wanting. As far as baseball games on Xbox go, you can’t make a wrong choice. It’s really the only option you have. This is a laid-back game that offers a good time, but is hindered by poor audio and questionable presentation.