Humanity is an excellent blend of puzzle and platformer that has an enormous amount of content. It’s one that will be in my Quick Resume for a long time as I jump in for a quick puzzle or two. It’s in Game Pass at launch on Xbox and I highly recommend anyone interested give it a spin.

I think HYPERCHARGE Unboxed’s biggest strength has been its marketing over the years. They’re not going for some live service title that is your forever game. The base game is $30 and if you have friends to play with you’ll get a week or two of fun out of the campaign as you try to unlock everything. It’s never bad, it’s never great, it’s fine.

Turbo Golf Racing is a great racing game and an all right golfing experience. It’s got an appealing visual style and music and it’s a casual title that’s easy to pick up and play but it’s also hard to master. There’s lots of customisation you can unlock to stand out of the crowd, no matter the playstyle. If RC cars and balls appeal to you, this game is for you.

Jokes and gaming slash cartoon references swim freely in this self-aware point and click adventure. I thoroughly enjoyed the humour in “Jorel’s Brother and The Most Important Game of the Galaxy” short runtime, even with a middling middle portion. A good title to experience on the go and for fans of the original television show.

Despite the backing of a company as large and as well-funded as Microsoft, Ninja Theory have, in my opinion, nurtured their independent spirit and kept it well and truly alive in every facet. It's brutal. It's breath-taking. It's brilliant. If this is “Independent AAA”, sign me up for more.

Pool Party is a fun sit-down and get-dirty physics-based party game that’s a lot of fun to play but feels lacking in its content offerings. Easy to pick up and play for everyone, even the less gaming-inclined.

System Shock is an all-time classic, and this is by far the best way to experience it. Nightdive Studios have followed through on their promise and delivered a full remake that gets what made the original so special.

While the level design is serviceable and the budget of the game clearly shows in things like the UI, the combat flows very well once you get a hang of it and the game is always giving you more monstrosities to slash into ribbons. Morbid: The Lords of Ire might not be the best soulslike I’ve played, but it’s absolutely one of the better games in the genre. And considering it’s not launching as a full-priced game, it’s hard not to recommend the game for fans of the genre looking for something similar but still fun enough to have a good time.

Revisiting Braid: Anniversary Edition has been a nice nostalgic experience for me, having not played the original since I fully completed it back in 2008. I was amazed at how some solutions had been completely forgotten by my aging brain, and it was lovely to get that feeling of being a genius all over again. Equally though, I found the discordant screeching of the audio mix combined when rewinding time to be too loud and more than a little irritating, but it’s a very minor niggle indeed. Maybe I’m just getting old.

Mediterranea Inferno is an excellent contemporary visual novel that will connect to you even through its eccentricities. A gorgeous presentation along with a mash of personal struggle grounded in Italian culture and LGBT-positive themes.

Little Kitty, Big City is a short and sweet experience, much like this review. Full of charm and heart, it’s well worth checking out Day One on Xbox Game Pass whether you’re a cat person or not.

Sea of Thieves remains an incredible experience for those of us who like to venture out into the unknown. The framework provided by the quests and the world is merely a routine, a backdrop of activities that allows the wonderfully unexpected and often hilarious to happen. It’s a beautiful and incredibly realised shared-world adventure, and for many players, the question of what might be over that horizon remains as alluring as ever.

Indika is an odd, wonderful title. Mixing 3D photo-realistic art with 2D-pixel graphics makes some bold choices. Excellent writing and voice acting help carry mediocre gameplay and created an experience I will never forget.

All in all, it’s a very promising start for Sker Ritual – I’m eager to see patches, balance changes, DLCs or even a sequel tackle the few shortcomings, because, underneath it all, it has all the elements that made us fall in love with the Zombies formula and then some. Bravo!

Ultimately, Richman 11 boils down to being a very well-made videogame rendition of a solid, though not particularly original or unmissable virtual board game. With multiple game modes, tons of customization, large amounts of shenanigans happening in the match with cards, deities, and more, plus even a solid online mode, it’s hard to ask more from a videogame of this kind. But the board game itself, underneath it all, is a slightly more varied but also somewhat more monotonous Monopoly, one that I don’t consider to be endlessly replayable like certain classics. Still, with this much content and all sorts of local and online multiplayer options, Richman 11 is easily one of the better board game experiences on Xbox, especially for younger folks who’d prefer something a bit more accessible.

Another Crab’s Treasure is a balls-hard Soulslike that was one of the most frustrating experiences of my reviewing career until I gave in and used its game-saving accessibility options. Once the difficulty was better balanced the game’s humor and heart were able to shine through.

SAND LAND offers a big beautiful dust bowl for players to explore to their hearts’ content. I found its story and its characters to be the main driver for my playthrough, but the fun vehicle combat went hand-in-hand in my enjoyment of the game. A great adaptation of a legend’s work.

Right now I’m not having nearly as much fun as I was hoping. Gorgeous visuals, occasionally stellar combat, and an intriguing narrative have been held back by progression issues, and far too much busywork in-between runs. I have confidence that Moon Studios will figure things out, though, and that by version 1.0 this game could be an all-timer. [Early Access Provisional Score = 65]

There’s nothing actually inherently wrong or bad with Wrath of the Mutants in terms of mechanics and combat. It’s a serviceable scrolling beat ’em up that brilliantly pays homage to the TV show it’s based on. I guess the “issue” is, that it’s not great either. It’s just ok. It’s just that “being ok” really stands out at a time when scrolling beat ’em ups are experiencing a renaissance with games releasing in the genre that stand toe to toe with classics of the past. Wrath of the Mutants does not. But I guess that’s ok.

Tales of Kenzera: Zau is a triumphant debut for Surgent Studios. At $20, and available on day one for PlayStation+ subscribers, any fan of the action-platformer genre would do well to check it out. Zau’s journey through loss will stick with me for a long time, and the excellent gameplay already has me itching to play through it all again.

TopSpin 2K25 is a massive disappointment. Feeling more like beta software, with a lack of modes, players, and fun. I cannot recommend this one at the egregious $70 price point.

With the Kickstarter long behind, Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes was easily worth the backing fee, my copy coming in just last Friday. I was skeptical, as stories with enormous casts don’t always fare well in pacing—but great combat, excellent visuals, and an entertaining story about rising from the ruins of warmongering makes for a fantastic turn-based time.

I’d like to say something more original or outstanding about ArcRunner, but in so many ways it’s as generic of a cyberpunk third person roguelite shooter as it gets. Solid visuals, a decent soundtrack, enjoyable but not outstanding gameplay, though impacted by a low variety that becomes evident when grinding through near identical scenarios one after another. And yet, I had a great time with this game, with tight difficulty and risk vs reward gameplay making it an enjoyable way to pass a couple evenings in this relatively unexciting April of new releases. If you need some mindless action that plays and looks pretty good, do keep an eye out for this one.

A distinct lack of it’s own identity, a bit of jank, some uneven performance and a lack of online multiplayer perhaps doesn’t make it into an essential buy, but if you’re nostalgic for FlatOut games, or just the arcade racer attitude of the 00’s and are able to put up with some of the jank, you will surely have a lovely time in Trail Out.

If you’re expecting more action and puzzles, then boy, you might bounce right off this one once you’ve finished gawking at how pretty it all is. My advice? Take it slow, and enjoy every moment with this bizarre and eccentric cast of characters. Games like Harold Halibut don’t come around very often.

House Flipper 2 is a massive improvement over the first game. While it can have some issues with a controller it’s not enough to keep me from recommending the title. Painting, Planting, Selling, and Flipping has never been a more enjoyably chill vibe than it is here.

Ereban: Shadow Legacy is an occasionally pretty, decently fun title. It’s not too long, and if you’re into collecting things there’s a solid reason to replay each chapter. I’m not sure when it is going to hit Xbox but if you have even a decent PC and love stealth platformers then this could be one worth picking up.

Botany Manor is an enjoyable puzzle-focused adventure with an obsession in weird plants and an interesting estate. What might be lacking in overall narrative is made up for pleasant pacing and a relaxing homework assignment at a country side world of plants.