The risk of too much-simulated suffering is that the most challenging decisions can leave you feeling emotionally detached, as the end often justifies the means. This dynamic makes Frostpunk 2 a unique experience where you can never truly be the ‘good guy,’ only ‘less bad.’ It’s better to play this in short bursts, as it will keep you from becoming emotionally numb to all the suffering in Frostpunk 2.

RoadCraft is a ton of fun. It smartly evolves the MudRunner series, taking one of my favorite physics-based puzzle games and adding in some deliciously creative chaos.

Teardown is really damned fun. The devs took a solid premise and built a great sandbox around it. Performance on console is better than I could have hoped for, and with proper mod and DLC support it should have tons of content for years to come.

DOOM: The Dark Ages takes us back to the Slayer at his most powerful, stylish cape and all. Twenty-two levels of mayhem, excellent pacing, and furious combat make this entry my favorite in the series yet.

With big boss fights, fun combat systems, and a charming story featuring justice and righteousness, ASTLIBRA Revision is a great 2D action RPG and well worth the time investment.

Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector is a worthy successor to one of the best indie games of the last few years. With it’s addictive gameplay loop, compelling and touching story, great art design, and more, I’d say anyone even remotely interested should give the game a look. Especially considering it’s releasing on Xbox Game Pass, and heck, is one of the best games for cloud gaming there is.

SILENT HILL f is a terrifying and terrific title. This harrowing tale of choice and consequence should thrill and properly disgust any fellow survival horror sicko.

Few games have made me feel a true sense of nostalgia. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Hot Wheels growing up, but I had my fair share. Seeing Bone Shaker and Rip Rod in full-size as I jump 2000 feet through one of if not the best-looking video game landscapes of all time is everything I could have ever dreamed of. If you enjoyed the base game at all then you owe it to yourself to play this expansion.

Hogwarts Legacy borrows a lot of design choices and ideas from other open world titles, and yet, it creates a truly unique product unlike any title in the genre, with a true focus on world-building rather than non-stop combat encounters; and it’s a title that should be experienced, even by those who aren’t Potter fans at all.

Dredge is an absolute gem. It features a rich, compelling narrative alongside an excellent gameplay and upgrade loop. It doesn’t overstay its welcome and has an excellent narrative. It is a game that you should not miss.

The Alters combines a bunch of genres I hate, and somehow makes a game I loved (when it worked).

Rise of the Golden Idol is a fantastic game. It is a brilliant 10-15 hour affair that focuses on your mind instead of your reflexes. While it’s best with a mouse, I wholeheartedly recommend it no matter where you’re playing. It has a thoroughly ridiculous and satisfying story and is a worthy sequel to one of 2022’s best games.

This is easily Gust’s best Atelier game. Offering a fun and relaxing experience for those that want to craft and battle away, this is the best final chapter Ryza could ask for.

The game has a lot of good things going for it. The narrative, puzzles, combat and new game mechanics make for an interesting and worthwhile experience but the extended game length is unnecessary and makes it feel like the story is being padded out to breaking point.

Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew is fantastic in every way. Excellent gameplay, nice graphics, great sound, and a ton of variety in its objectives mean this absolute gem is one you should look into no matter when you’re reading this review.

TUNIC is both an incredible and incredibly frustrating title. The combat lets down what otherwise is a masterpiece.

Gears of War: Reloaded is a solid graphical update to one of Xbox’s most important games. It is nearly 20 years old now, though, and some of that age is starting to show. With no true gameplay improvements it would be tough to tell Xbox’s hardcore to spend $40 on it. Thankfully it’s both a free upgrade if you ever played GoW: UE and is of course a Day One Game Pass release. For PlayStation and PC players who have never touched the franchise, this classic is still well worth checking out.

Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak is loaded with even more content and more ways to play said content. The changes to the weapons, to the gear and the added variety in both monsters and locale, make this an easy recommendation for anyone who enjoys the game and wants reasons to either keep playing or to come back. If you haven’t gotten your fill of hunting monsters yet, Elgado Outpost could surely use your help.

If you want to play games that respect your gaming time this is probably not for you. This game has a lot going for it but at the same time contains many things that diminish its playability.

With a mixture of wit, humor, and above all else heart this game is something no one should miss. Whether a fan of the Visual Novel genre or not this is a damn near perfect follow-up to the original.

Atelier Yumia’s first bout is a fun, open world crafting game that offers more than just clearing icons on a map—its verticality while offering player creativity through movement and housing tools make for a good time. It’s everything its developer has been building towards, and I’ve come away quite impressed with what they’ve got to offer.

Two Point Campus is a robust, accessible and unique simulation game that SEGA and Two Point Studios can be proud of. Two Point Museum is definitely recommended for fans of accessible simulation/management games.

This review might seem a little contradictory, critiquing and then partially absolving those critiques, but this is a review in progress after all. I’m still forming my final opinion of the game as I keep playing it, but what I can tell you now is that if you’re interested in Elden Ring combat and exploration, and also have a couple of friends who are, Elden Ring: Nightreign is a game full of depth and plenty of things to kill and places to explore. That being said, my mostly solo-play experiences were a mixed bag at best, preventing me from praising the game too much or giving a high “review-in-progress” temporary score. [Provisional Score = 72]

Battlefield 6‘s multiplayer is the most Battlefield-coded entry in the franchise in many years, taking us back to the series’ glory days. Tight gunplay, excellent presentation, impressive polish and a surprisingly robust launch arsenal. [Multiplayer Score = 90]

All in all, Forza Motorsport is a fantastic racer, offering its most comprehensive, realistic and spectacular racing experience ever. It was a long wait, but it was absolutely worth it.

Mortal Kombat 1 is one hell of a fighting game, one that I can see myself putting in as many hours as Mortal Kombat 11, if not more, and I’m really excited about its future.

In conclusion, I truly enjoyed playing through the Bloom section of the game. I have played the Life Is Strange games and I might prefer this, but perhaps that’s my 90’s nostalgia speaking! I will replay the game before the second half to get better relationship statuses as it turns out I wasn’t doing as well as I thought with my friendships (and possible relationships). If you are interested in story-driven games, some 90’s nostalgia, and paranormal magic vibes, then I do recommend you check out Lost Records.

Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess is experimental Capcom at its best. While some of the fights can teeter on feeling unfair the majority of the game is a glorious mix of hack-and-slash action with a heavy dose of tower defense. It’s launching directly into Game Pass and is well worth checking out for anyone looking for 14+ hours of a damned good time.