Not a terrible game, but it fails to capitalize on what it was trying to mimic. The controls are spot on, but the game is shallow. The characters are in abundance, but they all feel fairly similar.

The single-player is too frustrating to be fun on the harder levels and the multi-player feels tacked-on and useless. While the price is certainly right the game still doesn’t manage to hold water in the long run and will more than likely be just another reason to achieve 200 gamer points.

Guns of Icarus: Alliance is one of those games that has some great ideas and thought out implementation, but with some aspects of the performance and execution, it starts to hit some rough patches after a while. Finding a crew that works well together and does the right jobs at the right time can most certainly make this game stand out with some fantastic moments.

The most frustrating thing about Sengoku Dynasty is that you can see the potential hiding under all the rough edges. The visuals sell the fantasy, the survival loop has moments of satisfaction, and building up a village from nothing is conceptually strong. But the execution drags everything down. It feels like a foundation for a great game that never got the time to mature into one. Sengoku Dynasty is a game I wanted to love. I see the pieces of something truly unique, but those pieces never come together. The constant grind, poor villager AI, empty world, and clunky systems overshadow the good ideas. It’s not unplayable; it just isn’t enjoyable for long stretches.

For the big fans of Sonic, you may still get some enjoyment out of this HD remake. The Sonic and Shadow levels still hold up pretty well, and the small objectives you can play after beating the story mode will keep you entertained for a while. The Chao Garden is addicting and fun, but almost everything else is a bit of a let down. For ten dollars, it's a decent game, but many parts are frustrating. I highly suggest you keep in mind that this game is for nostalgia purposes only. If you're looking for a great Sonic game, pick up Sonic Generations instead.

Salt and Sacrifice is a greatly ambitious title, melding a number of gameplay elements from other popular series but it comes at the cost of overall polish and focus, leaving a frustrating experience that feels like a step back from its predecessor.

After a while, Jagged Alliance became repetitive. While I liked the mechanics and the thought put into the combat, due to some overly simplistic things, I found that doing missions that felt pretty much the same began to get to me over time. Still, I found the entire experience at least interesting, even when the story was kind of dragging along. At the end of the day, Jagged Alliance: Rage! is a decent little game with some annoying bits thrown in. It’s not going to set the world on fire, but it can keep some strategy fans busy for a little while with some fun thrown in for good measure. I’d just wait for a slight price drop before entering this jungle.

Yes, there were great additions to this year, but the horrible AI, and multiplayer just really mess up the experience for me.

The Ecto-1 segments are painful and the camera doesn't always behave the way you want, but blasting ghosts on the DS has never been this fun. I recommend checking it out if you are a die-hard fan of the series, but everyone else would be wise to rent first before taking the plunge.

All in all, I feel like Sundered had a great idea in place, but due to the procedurally generated rooms mixed with the nonstop enemy encounters, I felt like I wasn’t able to progress enough in a span of time to make me want to keep going. The game wants me to die and because of that, it felt like it didn’t matter if I was skillful enough to make it through, they wanted me to bang my head against a wall for about 30 minutes so I would gain enough shards to level up a few things then take it on using their progression system rather than my skills as a player. It ends up being a frustrating endeavor after a while. Now, that’s not to say there isn’t some enjoyable things to be had here, but I would be weary on spending the full price tag for now. After a little price drop or a sweet digital sale, give it a shot then.

I’m not totally sure as to who the target audience is for this collection. Older gamers who would have enjoyed these games in an arcade have had several other ways in which to play a lot of these games through the years. And that isn’t including games such as Pac-Man Championship Edition, which brings the classic gameplay up to date with modern gaming mechanics. Younger gamers, who may have never played any of these games, probably won’t enjoy most of them due to their money stealing design. I certainly would encourage youngsters to try out Pac-Man, Galaga and Dig Dug, as they are genuine classics, but $30 for two or three games that I would play long-term just doesn’t seem like good value. This game is probably best being held off on until a price drop.

The game itself is a proficient attempt and honestly not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. While the multi-player is easily the most disappointing aspect of the game fans of the genre that simply cannot get enough World War II action will find enough here to warrant a weekend rental.

By the time the dust settles, Haunted House Renovator is far from flawless, yet it remains an oddly engaging detour that leans heavily on its personality. Anyone looking for a straightforward, turn-your-brain-off decorating sim may come away disappointed. Honestly though I think those that come for the haunted bits might be more disappointed. While a really neat idea, the half-baked ‘ghost busting’ brings the whole house down.

Rogue Stormers isn’t going to blow your socks off by any means, but there is still some fun to be had, once you level up your characters and start experimenting with the sub-weapons. Add in a couple of friends to play with and you’re in for a decent time for at least a few hours. The grind may eventually get to you, but along the way, there can be some fun in there.

Gungrave G.O.R.E. is a game that feels stuck in the past. The design is excellent, the characters are fun, but the game just gets so repetitive and boring far too quickly. It isn’t a long game either and it feels like it is. That is not a good sign. I wanted to love it more than I did as I love the universe and have fond memories of those older PS2 games. This just feels like a continuation of those without the modern design and control scheme, and that drags down the fun factor over time.

At its heart, it's a realistic basketball game that tries to be an arcade game. If Tecmo stuck with their roots and made it the game an actual arcade style b-ball game a la Tecmo Bowl, NBA Unrivaled would have been awesome but with stiff gameplay and wonky AI, the only thing good about this game is the way it looks.

NFL head coach takes a bold leap and attempts to start something well needed in the sports simulation field, change. Unfortunately, it falters in more aspects than it flies, with horrible AI, and an in game system that makes the game feel like more of a chore than a fun experience.

If you’re into the anime style games and don’t mind trekking through a good amount of inconsequential dialog, it’s not a bad choice.

A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead is a mixed bag, while I enjoyed Alex’s story the journey to get to its end really felt endless at times. As I said, because players are forced to move through this world at a snail’s pace and avoid making sounds at all costs it really slows down the gameplay and thus the experience. There were points where just getting down a hallway felt like an eternity; I think this is an experience that just works better as a movie or TV show. Fans of the film may find this game to be much better than I did since there is an investment already in the world, but as a newbie the game did make me want to watch the films; so, I guess that’s something.

At its heart, it's a realistic basketball game that tries to be an arcade game. If Tecmo stuck with their roots and made it the game an actual arcade style b-ball game a la Tecmo Bowl, NBA Unrivaled would have been awesome but with stiff gameplay and wonky AI, the only thing good about this game is the way it looks.

Unfortunately, despite some great music and a decently slick interface, the whole experience proves a little too shallow for all but the most diehard MJ fan.

While it’s not Left 4 Dead, it is still a decent co-op shooter that really tries its best to be one. While there are some issues with AI and glitches, I still had a decent time with Earthfall. Co-op really makes up for a lot of the issues, and for a relatively cheap price, you can more than likely get a few friends to pick it up and have some fun co-op action for a few hours.

Immortals of Aveum is a decent game that takes some risks with its technology. Some of those pay off, while others hold it back. The game itself is fun if not a bit too long and it just comes across as a decent game that feels undercooked at times. I enjoyed my time with it, but I am likely to forget it come the end of the year. In an overcrowded year this big budget gamble might not pay off, but I would certainly be in for this team’s next outing. The pieces for a great game are here, just need to fit them into place.

Regardless of your preference it is also impossible to deny the addictiveness of this simplistic game of logic.

Terminator Salvation is not a terrible game; in fact the cover mechanic alone makes playing through it quite enjoyable at times. However, there simply is no denying that the entire package feels unfinished. From under a three hour playtime to some truly peculiar omissions, Salvation displays all the symptoms of a rushed movie tie-in.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 1 and 2 feels very much like a quick port job. I do feel good that Marvel has come out to address the larger issues, and players are getting that content, but the price is still too high a barrier for the state these games were released in.

Bush Hockey League is a game that seems perfect on the surface. Bring back simplistic hockey games that focused on arcade-style play. The bumbling story mode and lack of online play really hurt it. This game is best enjoyed in small doses with friends on a couch, which is not the ideal form of play anymore. Hitting Xbox One so late after it released on PC and during the busiest time of the year means most people will likely not even notice it came and went. Still, there is fun to be had.

Cold Darkness is another fun DLC release, but again it’s one that won’t last players long. If you prefer to play these extra modes over and over again, it’s considerably worth checking out. Yet that’s the problem; these feel as if they should have been in the core game or in an extra menu or bonus mode at launch.

As it stands today, UFC is a title that only the most die-hard fans are going to want to take the time to invest in.

Shaun White Skateboarding is a genuinely disappointing endeavor that had potential to nab the Tony Hawk fans that simply didn't graduate to Skate.

Rise & Shine looked like an early sleeper for 2017, but its design holds it back more often than not. I wanted to love it, but after banging my head against it for the short duration it lasts, it wasn’t worth the tedium.

This is by far one of the most obscure collections I have experienced to date. Earnest Evans is niche and the other two included games will only be recognized by the hardest of the hardcore. It is also not a lot of fun to play these games, so the nostalgia wears off fairly quickly. It was cool to check out, but I did not find myself coming back for more after a couple hours. This will likely sit in my collection as an oddity, which I guess is fitting as the original games likely suffered the same fate.

Armored Core: Verdict Day is a solid entry for those that have stuck with it since day one. Anyone coming in fresh or even returning from the series’ past is in for a rude awakening. The unfriendly design and gross presentation are quick deterrents to an otherwise massively deep experience. I cannot recommend the game to anyone outside that small niche, which is where I see this series slowly fading into the darkness if From Software doesn’t make some massive changes, and soon.

As it stands Sea of Thieves feels like a title that gets the ideas in place for an amazing game, yet fails to capitalize on them. There simply isn’t enough content to keep me coming back. I love Rare and I hope this builds into something amazing at some point, but for now this game is hard to recommend sinking a serious amount of time into.

Pac-Man World Re-Pac is a solid game that just doesn’t wow on any level. The concept feels from a different time and anyone who has nostalgia will likely enjoy the game for what it is. Still not entirely sure why this game was chosen for a remake as opposed to perhaps something like Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures from the 360 era. Those were much more competent platform games. Still it is a decent package with some frustrating older design.

A solid game that overcomplicates its genre roots with its unique twist. Production values are solid, but also bland when considering this is a game with little diversity in the game play.

As a party game it's cheery, accessible, clear in its objectives and pretty much appropriate for young and old alike (unless, of course, you object to using the Squeeballs as test subjects in your sadistic games).

Project Root delivers on its promise of a bullet-hell style game with twin stick controls, but the mixture comes with plenty of issues. Those looking for a grindy-challenging affair that is mechanically sound will not find their money wasted, but I still wish it was fine-tuned for a more enjoyable experience.

Road Redemption isn’t what I hoped it would be, and that may not be entirely the game’s fault. Nostalgia can be a cruel mistress. However, the flaws on show here do prevent the game from standing up on its own, and although it can be fun and engaging sometimes, I would recommend waiting for a price drop before picking it up.

Ultimately, I like the concept of Detective Pikachu and will likely see the movie when it releases, but hopefully the developers choose to challenge their audience a bit more with any potential sequel.

While there are three modes of play, I found only deathmatch able to hold my interest for very long. Flag Rally becomes tedious quickly, and Gate Relay is a generic Mario Kart with uninspired track design.

Caladrius Blaze has good core mechanics which offers some classic shmup gameplay. The shame breaks are a disappointing distraction at best and the game’s campaign is a little short. However, in terms of action this is a pretty solid shmup and should please most fans of the genre.

The second outing feels like the balance the game should have had, and it is a lot more fun. For players willing to suffer through it once, it almost makes up for the tedium. The problem arises once again in that there are so many games out there that work on the first try. Maybe the developers will patch out the issues, and if so Ruiner is a great idea with some truly questionable mechanics that make it a chore to play more often than it should.

If you can make it past the inaccurate controls, Kung-Fu Live is actually fun.

In the end, the basics are here, but there are more complete packages available in the genre.

Cyber Clutch: Hot Import Nights is a game that looks good on paper and screenshots but falls short in several aspects. The biggest issue is the AI and handling, which are key components of a racing game. I get their vision, I want to love the game, but I just can’t. It feels like a few more months in the oven and this could be a good title to return to if the developers clean it up, but as it is, it is hard to recommend.

Wing Island is not going to replace Pilotwings anytime soon however, if you are looking for a quirky arcade flying game with short spurts of unadulterated fun, then you will be satisfied.

I wanted there to be more to How to Survive. It plays well, has some cool ideas and the combat is satisfying, but none of it ever evolves beyond that.

Shaun White Skateboarding is a genuinely disappointing endeavor that had potential to nab the Tony Hawk fans that simply didn't graduate to Skate.

Unless it’s telling me an epic story like God of War, Persona or Halo Infinite anymore I just wanna get in, have some fun and get out. Which you can do with Extraction, again with the right group of friends. Other than that, with difficulty spikes as a solo player, and the unstable randos players will be bound to run into online, I don’t see this being much more…which is a shame because Rainbow deserves better. Pray for Sam Fisher.

I went from not caring, to having to own the next numbered Final Fantasy game, it is that good. Still the demo doesn’t warrant the full price of a retail game, and Type-0 falls flat in too many areas for me to make a solid recommendation.

Moto Racer 4 tugged at my nostalgia from the original PlayStation games, but it left me feeling cold and empty afterwards. I wanted it to be good, heck I would have settled for it being mediocre, but in the end it just feels like a game lost in time.

Tournament of Legends was much better than I had initially anticipated, but I am a sucker for generic fighting games with off-the-wall characters. If they had kept it Mature rated like it was initially supposed to be, and added fatalities, it would have been this generation's War Gods.

I can see that there is a game to be enjoyed in Phantom Doctrine. I really want to enjoy it, I can’t though until the issue with combat is fixed. So far the best solution has been what Mario + Rabbids has done with its cover system, but even that isn’t a perfect response to a clear problem with turn based strategy games. There’s some unique aspects that I hope are observed by other developers but there are better strategy titles out there like Invisible Inc. that do the core basics better.

Grow Up is a lot more of the same and with little fanfare I feel most have already forgotten the original, let alone know the sequel even exist.

The brightest things about this game were when it was pitting the cast against the supernatural but these things are few and far between and take a LONG time to get to. This is an extremely slow burn, and since the characters feel paper thin; there just isn’t a lot to grab onto here. The Casting of Frank Stone has tons of references for Dead by Daylight fans but the lack of scares and likeable characters makes this one best left on the hook.

Hyakki Castle is a game with some clever ideas but falters in execution and implementation- leading to an experience that feels serviceable but decidedly bittersweet as I’m left wondering what could have been.

Game & Wario is disappointing mainly because the heart of the series feels stripped out, and in its place is a collection of mostly uninspired mini-games. I really wanted to see Nintendo take advantage of the Gamepad in unique ways, not just have me tilt to steer.

Slitterhead is unique. That is the biggest compliment I can give it. There are things here that I love. The mood of the game, the music, and the concepts. It just doesn’t mesh well into a cohesive experience.

The Diofield Chronicles has a solid foundation of mechanics that is hampered greatly by its poor balancing of difficulty, a cast of forgettable characters and a world that failed to draw me in with its lackluster presentation.

Daydreamer had the potential to be a sleeper hit in the Summer of lacking game releases, sadly it falls short on the most important of game fundamentals. I wanted to love this game a lot more than I do, but it just misses all the important notes in its execution.

Rogue Trooper Redux is an ok game. It has some interesting ideas with its mechanics, and while the story was bland, I was never bored with it. I wish I could have gotten into a full co-op game, but I don’t know how many people actually have the game. Even then, the campaign can last players a decently long time, and there is some fun to be had even if it does show it is a product of its time, and for the $25 price tag, it’s not a big hit to the wallet. If you enjoy 3rd person shooters and are looking to check out some games from the past, you can most certainly do a lot worse than Rouge Trooper. Just keep in mind, it is stuck in 2006.

Enclave is a quirky game that has some moments and I enjoyed revisiting it. I love this era where any game can come back and it is great for nostalgia. If you don’t have any fond memories of this game you might want to steer clear. This is not going to impress anyone in today’s world, but for those looking for a trip down memory lane of this obscure title, this version achieves what it set out to do.

With the recent release of Hyperdimension Noire setting the bar for quality and creativity for all Neptunia games to follow, I feel this one just falls well below the mark.

If your dream is to platform with your guitar peripheral, Fret Nice is everything naughty. Stripped of its own gimmick, it's just a quirky downloadable platformer with gameplay tailored to an idea that doesn't work. Rock at your own risk.

Flatout 4 feels like a game destined to reinvigorate the franchise and just ran out of steam. I am a massive fan of the original game and its sequel, and while this is light years beyond the abomination that was the third game, it still falls short. More tracks, more variety, and some much needed polish would have gone a long way in bringing back this cult classic. As it stands though, arcade racers still sit dormant in today’s gaming landscape.

Destiny itself is undoubtedly fun to play, but this expansion is hard to recommend for the price.

Risen is a weird release. Sure, we are getting just about everything these days and I love that, but this one is just a weird pull. The genre has its fans, heck one of them is on our weekly podcast, so I can see the appeal of bringing back the classic Euro-jank formula. Risen is packed with content and if you can get past its blemishes there is a solid RPG here to last you at least 60 hours, but I feel a lot of today’s gamers won’t even get off the beach tutorial at the beginning of the game.

I can’t say I loved Pixel Gear VR. It works well enough and the shooting mechanics are fun, yet with the limited enemies and levels, I felt the repetition hitting fast and hard.

The biggest issue with Bounty Hunter is that it is a game of its time. The level design and navigation are frustrating, levels are too long, and the lack of save anywhere can get tedious at times. I did enjoy the added content such as the Boba Fett skin, but it just wasn’t enough to make this feel like a proper remaster. This is a hard game to recommend if you don’t have massive nostalgia for it. It wasn’t heralded when it came out, and that hasn’t changed with this re-release.

So, what do I say? It’s fun, people should play it but clearly not on Switch. The campaign is fairly long as is, but I had around 10 crashes playing the game. If the game ran well (which out of good faith I will assume is the case on other platforms) it would absolutely be a must buy at $34.99 for the amount of great content of the campaign alone. Since I didn’t beat the campaign, I didn’t get to see the mission mode. I will likely buy this game somewhere. It will run better and the reviews seem to match what I wanted to give this game which was a 9, but alas I had to heavily drop the score.

Shadow Labyrinth is a hard game to nail down. It does some cool things here and there but is bogged down by poor level design and tedious Metroidvania game play. I wanted to love it, but came away just slightly entertained. The price helps, only clocking in at $29.99 makes it easier to swallow. I wish it was better, but at worst, it is a decent “one of those” that fails to capture the magic of the genre.

This is one of those games that you might snag on sale and end up finding enjoyment in its merits. Just know that there are several problems that are impossible to overlook when you do. Still, fans of the Lost Planet series would do well to give it a go when it gets cheaper.

I wanted to love this game, anyone who knows me knows that I love samurai, ninjas, swords and the like, I was just bored by this game sadly. Rise of the the Rōnin doesn’t feel like a game that is worth $70 in my opinion, it is a hodgepodge mix of some of gaming’s biggest trends lately but never amounts to the sum of those parts.

It is still fun to swing around the city, and some portions really shine, but a full-fledged, full-price experience Amazing Spider-Man 2 is certainly not.

City Hunter is a hard game to recommend unless you specifically fit into that crossover I mentioned earlier. You need to be a massive fan of the franchise and have some sort of nostalgia for this particularly mediocre side-scrolling action title. Otherwise, it just falls flat. I wanted to love it, TurboGrafx 16 games are normally hidden gems, but this one just exists. I am glad it is available, but there is just not enough here to make it a forgotten classic.

Rayman Origins is a unique, well designed platformer with loads of personality that simply doesn't feel right on the 3DS.

For $5 a lot of it can be overlooked, though the grinding to see the rest of the tracks almost forced me to stop playing. Still, with friends this is a great looking racer that thinks outside the box. I would love to see this team do a proper console/PC title in the series, one without all the hangups of mobile game design.

When releasing a large collection of classic games, there is a lot that can be done to make them more accessible without compromising on the original vision of the game. Unfortunately, in the case of the Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection, very little was done, resulting in a barebones port that highlights the aged nature of these GBA titles that will likely sour the taste buds of those accustomed to modern sensibilities.

Cho Aniki Zero is definitely an experience, but not one that probably warrants its hefty price tag.

Perhaps a bigger emphasis on characters or story could even go a long way to give players the incentive to continue or get more involved. It’s very possible the game simply isn’t for me, and this will become a niche title. But in my eyes, this is one prison I will simply not be returning to.

I didn’t really talk about the story on purpose, and that’s because its extremely short. While I enjoyed my time with High on Knife, that time is only a few hours to see the story and maybe one more to wrap up side quests and things. And as fun as the new pinball type B.A.L.L. gun is, I had hoped for something that would add a new weapon and a new personality to my arsenal. Alas, the BALL gun is worked by three chubby members of the blue man group and only ever talks in ‘meeps’ and ‘oops’. Again, gun is DOPE and adds a lot to the gameplay, just wish it was voiced like the others. The most damning thing here though is the narrative just abruptly ends. I don’t want to spoil it but while the developer’s kind of make a joke about the ending and how it just fades to black; the overall experience just left me with a lot of questions and an unsatisfied feeling in my stomach.

When played with at least two other people, it shines bright, but when tackling solo it is a bore more often than not. I recommend picking this one up after a small price drop, and again only if you can convince your friends to join you.

At the top of this I posed a question, does all this content equate to a better Call of Duty game, and I think the truthful answer is no. No doubt the team took some really big swings this year with the campaign, but I feel like they missed more than they hit with it. The lack of checkpoints and being always online is rough, especially when there are tons of fans who only play single-player and loves these games. If you are returning to Black Ops for the multiplayer or zombies then you are in for a great time, of course mileage may vary depending on which mode and if players vibe with it or not. But ultimately this year’s Call of Duty just feels like a big bag of melted candy, sure it will taste good but is the mess you got to work through to enjoy it worth it in the end?

Many aspects of Time Recoil show potential, but the only part that is actualized is its gameplay. The typically confusing time-travel plot impedes enjoyment as does the randomness in levels, which nearly diminishes that stellar gameplay.

Collecting things for the sake of collecting them isn’t a very compelling reason, and given there isn’t much more to Full Bore than that, it ends up being a decent incomplete puzzle platformer and not much more.

The lack of online and frustrating AI will test player’s patience, but underneath it all is a solid kart racer that is best enjoyed with friends in the silky smooth split screen mode.

The Deer God mostly stumbles over its random nature and lack of explanation. It is the kind of game that is best enjoyed with a FAQ explaining all the systems and how to progress. Still, even with that the random nature really drags down some of the quests.

The controls and graphics have not aged well, but underneath it all, it is still fun to earn some crazy money.

If you aren’t absolutely desperate for a new JRPG, you can safely skip this one and perhaps replay P4G instead.

There is so much content on the disc that it is hard not to recommend the game to DBZ fans. Sure the combat can be frustrating at times, but once you get past that this is one collection of fan service that should not be missed.

It’s a real shame that the reputation of this franchise has evolved over the last 5 years from the standard of the best of what sports games can offer to a shining example of its worst excesses. Comparing this game to MLB The Show, another game that offers microtransactions, only increases how egregiously 2K exploits players through rigging everything from the on-court gameplay to traversal from quest to quest to encourage additional spending despite already having collected the cost of a full priced game up front (plus that sweet State Farm money). While several of the changes present in this years game are disappointing (including the inexplicable decision to dumb down MyCareer) there are some good things here. Unfortunately (to paraphrase Ralph Waldo Emerson, a first I believe for this site) the ever-present feeling that I’m being milked for every dime I can spare speaks so loudly, I cannot hear what any of the improvements say.

Fans of Gears of War will be best served by buying the DLC Season Pass, as that will offer the best value for money, and they are the type of person most likely to buy all of the DLC. However, it is really hard to recommend this as a stand-alone purchase due to the cost and the lack of content.

R.I.P.D. is not a bad game, just a simple one. It is something I would recommend hammering out in a weekend with a buddy over some beers, and likely never playing it again. Still, for ten bucks it is worth that weekend if there is nothing else to keep you occupied. I had fun with it, and that is more than I can say for most $10 titles, especially ones with a useless movie license tied to them.

Hidden Agenda is a hard recommendation, because the game feels like a natural fit to share with non-gamers, but we had one playthrough that ended so abruptly and unsatisfyingly I thought we had somehow skipped a section, and had I brought this game out at a party I would have felt like we totally wasted two hours. With the right group (like people who understand that if you don’t do well at a game you lose) it’s enjoyable, provided you have the time available to finish it in one sitting. Ultimately the game rests more on a few short action sequences than it does on the decisions made, which undercuts the experience and contributes to Hidden Agenda falling short of its potential.

Sure, it is slow and methodical at times and downright boring at others, but a good sword slashing game is just what you need to give you a break from all the guns found in most games. I just wish more care had been applied to the functionality of the game. As it stands, Cursed Crusade is the definition of disappointing.

I commend Namco for trying to make Go Vacation more than a minigame collection. It's a shame that they seem to have lost site of why people buy minigame collections. Additionally, the frustrating open-world system that exists without any sort of way to directly access the game you want is a serious misstep.

Tharsis is a game of management, analysis, and some dumb luck. There were times I found it highly enjoyable, but there were more times I found it frustratingly unfair.