As a professional car mechanic who has not played the other episodes of the Car Mechanic Simulator license, I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by the realism of this simulation in regards to dismantling the parts, ordering those that seem defective or repairing them when possible. Expanding your garage to optimise your workspace, buying a car at auction to make a profit and of course receiving cars whose customers tell you that there is only a "small" noise when half the car needs to be replaced, the recipe is complete. Despite some flaws in its usability, Car Mechanic Simulator 2021 is a briliant game that all mechanic lovers (and others) should own.

Annapurna Interactive truly is a well-tried publisher and Luis Antonio sets in stone his talent thanks to 12 Minutes. Despite feeling like swimming in a fish bowl during a few loops, the title manages nonetheless to absorb the player in a story that is both captivating and confusing for at least a good five hours if one enjoys solving puzzles as well as making their brain overheat. Graphically simple, yet efficient, the characters’ charisma and magnetism rely heavily on the amazing performances by James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley and Willem Dafoe. The game can be done again a few times if one wishes to unlock the alternate endings for curiosity’s sake. Even though 12 Minutes isn’t perfect, it can easily join the big boys.

RiMS Racing is far from being a negative experience. Sadly enough for RaceWard, the studio in charge, their expectations might’ve been too far up. Basically, we are faced with a game teeming with good ideas but an overall outdated realisation. The content really is too light, the AI is frustrating, and the multiplayer lobbies are desperately empty. For whoever is passionate enough to discover the game, some good sensations can still be felt with a controller thanks notably to a very immersive point of view within the helmet and the joy of mingling with one’s vehicle to maximise its stats.

Sometimes, even a small game can be greatly disappointing. It is true that we might have set the bar too high for Joe Winter’s first production. However, we are entitled to ask ourselves if the latter was not simply too ambitious. It doesn’t matter if the whole thing is too short or badly translated. Alas, it seems less forgivable to be confronted with a title that, by piling up references, never manages to be satisfactory in one of the genres it is inspired by. In other words, the developer of Resting Relic never seems to have the means to achieve his ambitions. This results in a game with flawed action phases, outdated platform sequences as well as empty and bland sceneries barely able to move us. We were hoping to see Song of Iron reach Valhalla. Unfortunately, it begins an irremediable fall into the depths of oblivion.

Psychonauts 2 is the sequel to a video game masterpiece, a little-known nugget that still deserves all the praise it received when it was released. Double Fine and Tim Schafer had the difficult task of bringing the first opus out of anonymity while offering a sequel that was up to the task. Psychonauts 2 manages to reach this summit, to stand next to this firmament by taking back what made the first one a critical success while making it more accessible. Psychonauts 2 is a generous, funny, surprising, intelligent game with an excellent narrative and engaging characters. However, newcomers may be a bit lost because this second episode follows the plot directly after the first one, while old players may criticize it for remaining a bit too wise and losing the impertinence of its humor. However, the success remains undeniable with regard to the challenge and arouses the desire to get lost in the psychic adventures of Razputin! Let's put on our aviator glasses and go back!

At first sight, Fallen Knight reminds us of Capcom’s blue character. Its inspiration is obvious, but it has nevertheless managed to free itself from the original material by offering its own rather successful experience, albeit a little short. Offering a lively and nervous close contact gameplay, it happens to be very fun if you take the time to master it in order to be able to disarm the different enemies – including the bosses – to obtain different advantages. Yes, Fallen Knight is quite a nice game, and its goal is clearly to encourage the player in redoing the levels in a different order, all the while getting better scores and times.

Greak: Memories of Azur truly is a lovely production that largely deserves to be acknowledged. The delightful and hand-drawn sceneries and animations are completed with a mesmerising soundtrack. Whoever is fond of Ori should also be satisfied with the title’s main gameplay. But Greak: Memories of Azur was not keen on being solely a simple Metroidvania. It allows itself the luxury of drawing some inspirations from Trine and offers us to play as not one, but three characters with different abilities. Unfortunately, this addition doesn’t run smoothly and the simultaneous handling of the three heroes quickly lost us, especially during the boss fights.

Beasts of Maravilla Island isn’t a bad game per se, but it's not a particularly memorable one either. Despite the repetitive nature of the childish photographic gameplay and some glitches, the game still deserves to be acknowledged for its nicely coloured graphics, a discreet and pleasant soundtrack and a rather interesting final moral. Beasts of Maravilla Island is a unique experience (in the literal sense of the word) because you won’t necessarily want to dive back into the journey again.

Orcs Must Die! 3 is a great way to blow off some steam. The gameplay is quick to grasp and satisfactory thanks to a nice progression curve. On the other hand, no risk has been taken on this opus. Newcomers will be pleasantly surprised by the efficient, but classic gameplay and those used to it may be quickly bored by the lack of novelty. If you are tempted by the experience, we recommend that you try the online two player mode to have a taste of the adventure.

Blaster Master Zero is an excellent surprise. The Japanese of the Inti Creates studio have managed to propose a remake that is faithful enough to the original while being sufficiently different to arouse the interest of both old and new players. Exploration is pleasant and fluid and avoids the pitfall of unnecessary back and forth travelling. The increasing power of your character and tank is enjoyable, and the difficulty is well balanced. Indeed, the latter offers a kinder experience than the original while keeping you on your toes. Once the game is over, you will only have one desire: start Blaster Master Zero 2 and 3.

The Forgotten City could have been a real gold nugget, but unfortunately, it is only gold-plated. The fault lies in the outdated technique and action phases. But for most of us, the gold plating is enough and fulfils its make-believe role perfectly. All the more so as the title manages to bring about a high-quality scenario, writing and general consistency. For a first try, the new studio Modern Storyteller offers us a convincing investigation where exploration and dialogue are at the gameplay’s core. Honestly, following the plot of the Forgotten City was enjoyable and we are looking forward to their next adventure, hoping that Nick Pearce and his team will make progress on the technical side. Errare humanum est, persevare diabolicum.

Hades finally opens the gates of Hell and swallows us – not without pleasure – in its fiery limbo. Gorgeous, intense and offering a tremendous amount of content that could almost be labelled as indecent, it is with great excitement that we return blow for blow to the infernal demons without being able to put down the controller. More than just a typical rogue-like game, Hades brilliantly manages to string together good ideas such as its social hub or its many customisable weapons. The soundtrack and the dubbing were not overlooked; on the contrary, they make for an unforgettable experience. Hell has never tasted sweeter.

Hey, you there, still hanging around? Stop whatever you’re doing and download Griftlands on your console: you’ll thank us later! Joining the genre’s big names like Hadès or Slay the Spire, Klei Entertainment’s new masterpiece is only missing a French translation to earn its credentials among French-speaking gamers. Combining a colossal amount of content, a magnificent artistic direction and an addictive gameplay, Griftlands shows all its cards and wins the pot.

The console adaptation of Microsoft Flight Simulator is as good as it could be. Few concessions were observed to make it run on Xbox Series. Obviously, some of the interfaces are quite difficult to apprehend with a controller, but one has to acknowledge that it would’ve been difficult to do otherwise even if we still secretly hope that a few updates will enhance that aspect. As it is, the game is an exceptional experience of fullness for whoever enjoys watching gorgeous sceneries while the others can train and hone their piloting skills with a controller or with other devices. As it is included in the Xbox Game Pass, you simply have to try it at least once to discover the amazing features of this flight simulator.

As we draw our conclusions, it seems important to note that The Ascent was created by a small team of skilled developers. And what else is there to say except maybe that they completed the challenge with flying colours. For almost 15 hours, Neon Giant’s game puts the RPG aspect aside to embark us on a huge romp through a larger-than-life city, whose AD rivals that of Cyberpunk 2077. Those fond of finesse and detail-oriented builds will need to go somewhere else. For the others, it would be difficult to miss the Swedish studio’s first game as it was released in the Xbox Game Pass on its launch. Visually speaking, this one is quite outstanding and is a pure action guilty pleasure made of gunpowder, metal and blood. While waiting to be able to enjoy a 4-player coop session, we’re already dreaming of a probable second part developed by a larger team. Hopefully, this would be enough to improve what needs to be improved and revamp the game from being a pleasant surprise to being a must-have.

Even though Samurai Warriors 5 does not revolutionise the Musou genre, it nonetheless allows newcomers to smoothly start their adventure. It provides an efficient narrative that is simultaneously highlighted by gorgeous cinematics and tainted by a relatively poor staging. Thanks to their experienced background, the team from Omega Force offers us –as always– a solid gameplay with a nice and diverse selection between the 27 warriors. Slaughtering the enemy forces is quite delightful, and what better way to do so than with friends at home? Yet, the outdated technical side is still annoying. To sum up, if you weren’t already a fan of the Musou genre, Samurai Warriors 5 won’t change your mind. Otherwise, you’ll spend some quality time with it.

Wingspan is a fantastic game capable of subtly making you learn many things on birds thanks to in-game mechanics adapting to the special features of each species. It’s a very entertaining experience that even manages to arouse the curiosity and interest of players who are not familiar with the world of birds. The digital version suffers from the loss of touch and the pleasure of being able to play around a table for a moment of irreplaceable conviviality. Nonetheless, it allows the player to easily discover Wingspan’s peculiar mechanics and atmosphere at an affordable price. Whatever the version, we strongly recommend that you discover this game.

The Strange Story Of Brian Fisher will not revolutionise the puzzle-game genre, but it nonetheless manages to stand out from the crowd. The brilliance of Intetic’s title results from an atmosphere that is both bleak and creepy, and it acts as the beginning of a series of games that promises to be captivating. If the hero’s face looks rough around the edges, the general graphics manage to neatly save the day. The soundtrack, despite being quite basic, ticks all the boxes to put you in the mood. With approximately 3 hours until completion and depending on your puzzle-solving skills, time will fly and isn’t that what we wish for? Keeping the brain busy and not think about what really happens around us?

F1 2021 offers a fascinating immersion into the most popular category of car racing. The new scripted adventure “Braking Point” truly is successful and manages to grasp its audience’s attention for around ten hours with a thrilling storyline, captivating cinematics, and racing challenges. Adding the two-player career mode effectively pumps up the excitement and the interest in this classical race-game experience. Even though it’s a quality game with lots to offer, it must be noted that losing the retro events is puzzling and the rest of the game is a mere copy-paste of the previous title. Another drawback is that the supposed “optimisation” inherent to the Series X|S is rather disappointing, even if the technical and graphical basis of the last opuses was quite impressive already. Despite these issues, this 2021 vintage remains a fabulous, skillful, and fun experience to play: a real must-have for any F1 fan.

Outbreak: Endless Nightmares will undoubtedly have trouble finding its audience. The game’s rogue-like aspect lacks further development with certain levels not being randomly generated enough - the inside elements are the only one not being predefined - and are acting as obstacles to the player’s free will and skill set to progress. Having to discover coins to unlock new levels will be a great source of frustration for many players. The poor sound design and the fixed camera angles that don’t always change when the character is already out of focus keep making the immersion into the horror harder and harder. This also results in a controllability that isn’t convincing enough. Yet, the weapon’s durability, the hidden documents to find for a better understanding of the lore, the skill points or even the two-player option will be able to satisfy the less demanding players… And for many gaming sessions.

Our fear of a 1.5 version of Sniper: Ghost Warriors Contracts, only 18 months after the previous one was released, turned out to be quite real. Fortunately, our concern was soothed by the studio's choice for a Middle East environment with its warm colours instead of a freezing Siberia, as well as adding the well designed and essential long-range shooting feature for contracts of more than one kilometre. We can’t deny that Contracts’ formula isn’t efficient for whoever is fond of a mix of precision shots, action and stealth. This second episode enhances many strong features of the previous one, but it’s sad to say that it also keeps all the annoying parts such as a poor AI and a bland narrative to keep up appearances. Nonetheless, for whoever thinks that sniper shots are divine gifts, they will obviously have a dozen hours of intense fun with it. Thanks to an AA’s cheaper range of price, the contract is rightly fulfilled and let us hope for an exclusively new gen third episode that’ll take risks and be more ambitious than ever.

In today’s brutal and savage gaming world, Mutazione really is a breath of fresh air. During approximately 6 hours, the game brilliantly makes us encounter touching characters and cross a variety of soothing landscapes despite the absence of a real gameplay. Whether visually or musically, thanks to a detail-oriented work and the studio’s wish to immerse the player in a dreamlike atmosphere we rarely witness, this initiatory journey is a fine achievement. Let’s meet at the forest’s edge and get ready: the gardens still have a lot to offer.

DoubleMoose Games missed their shot with their new outlet for steam as it simply doesn’t match the grotesque pleasure felt when playing its counterpart and role model, the one and only Goat Simulator. This results in a tedious experience that doesn’t have a lot to offer besides a short-lived and temporarily amusing multiplayer mode able before abandoning all hope and putting down the controller.

Even though our last trip to Colorado in Wasteland 3 goes back a while, one must admit that returning there for the new DLC entitled The Battle of Steeltown was an absolute pleasure. Indeed, the Rangers are still up for a good dose of adrenaline, money, guns, fights and encounters with freaks, bloodthirsty raiders, existentialist robots, and philosophical workers. The Battle of Steeltown offers us a narrative as “subtle” as always, more strategic fights embellished with new features forcing us to drastically change our already quite-well set methodology. This first DLC is rather short, but clearly worth the €13, 99 it asks or even less for the Xbox Game Pass subscribers.

Even though we had no knowledge about Necromunda’s universe, we had a good time playing it. It’s hard to say if the lore purists and aficionados will be convinced, but we truly enjoyed the game’s artistic direction and the environment depicted by the development team. Unfortunately, the plot (as well as the side missions) truly lacks some depth and nothing really helps us understand what is going on with Necromunda and the gangs inhabiting it. Nonetheless, the title offers a dynamic and pleasant gameplay sublimated by a decent soundtrack and level design. It’s a shame the game gets tarnished by small technical glitches and defects. As is, and as long as those issues haven’t been fixed, we’d say wait a bit before buying it.

Flowing Light is a clever and well-made game that will push your muscle memory and your reflexes to their limits. Merciless at times, this game will please those fond of scoring games and tube shooters. If you fall in that last category, prepare yourself to spend dozens of hours playing it to obtain all the S ranks of a truly well-made adventure. Unfortunately for the others, let’s be honest, this can quickly become a very painful experience. You’ve been warned.

Considering it’s the first videogame adaptation of the latest edition of Games Workshop’s famous miniature wargame, Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Stormground really is quite a success. The Canadian studio Gasket Games offers us a very convincing, fun and addictive turn-based and tactical roguelite game experience. Indeed, the core of the gameplay is focused on skirmishes with fewer than fifteen units present at the same time and does not offer the tremendous battles that can be experienced with the miniature game. However, the battles are dynamic and tactical enough to satisfy the experienced players and sufficiently accessible to attract some new ones. The fact that there are only three factions may also disappoint, but choosing the faction wisely will have its importance and will enable the gameplay to be different each time. If the title finds its audience, other locations and factions could soon join the fight. That would be well deserved.

Knight Squad 2 could be perceived as quite a minimalist sequel for those who’ve already played the previous title in every possible way with their friends. Nonetheless, the pleasure felt when playing remains the same and whoever discovers this multiplayer game for the first time will greatly value being able to launch quick and entertaining games online or with friends at home kicking back in the couch. After all, there are few games nowadays offering accessible and stress-free gaming sessions for up to 8 players.