Drug Dealer Simulator is not going to appeal to everyone based on what its very game is. But those that do check it out will find a pretty competent business simulator that makes some missteps. Graphics feel dated and bland, there are a lot of menus to navigate, and the game is poor at explaining things. It just feels crazy because almost everything that DDS isn’t, Schedule 1 is. If you have an Xbox, then this is passable drug dealing experience and is worthy of your time until Schedule 1 makes its inevitable console debt that is.

Age of Mythology: Retold – Immortal Pillars is a great expansion for the series and feels like a celebration of Chinese mythology by not only showcasing excellent storytelling but also building on the top-notch strategic elements from its original release. By introducing the rich tapestry of Chinese legends and pairing it with refined gameplay and the stunning visuals, the expansion successfully reinvigorates the classic game for a new generation. Whether you’re a long-time fan or a newcomer, Immortal Pillars offers tons of improvements over the base game and more to love about the Age of Mythology.

The more I played of Steel Seed the more I felt like that old saying where the kid asks for McDonalds and their mom says they have that at home. Yea, well Steel Seed is like the Stellar Blade we have at home. While the game itself is competent, its greatest sin for me is that it just wasn’t very fun. This seed didn’t bring forth the crop I thought it would, and I suggest just skipping this one.

Monster Energy Supercross 25 is a terrible name for such a finely crafted game. This is for the hardcore fans of the sport and Milestone has gone the extra mile to make sure all the realism is intact. They could have done more to ease in casual players, but everything else is fantastic. The new engine levels up the visuals and the customization is very appreciated. You just have to know what you are getting into before diving in. This game takes commitment and practice to fully enjoy it. Once you get past that though, it is one of the best in the genre.

Gorn 2 is a solid follow-up to the original; the new weapons, narrative and physics add so much to the already established formula of over the top. Players can expect flying body parts, floppy weapons and some genuinely hilarious moments. The boss fights are lots of fun, and the narrative is a really nice addition to what Gorn 2 offers; I do wish it was a tad longer but as the entity known as Q once said to Capt. Jean-Luc Picard; “All good things must come to an end”. Gorn 2 is a great reason to knock the dust off the VR device in your life, and its coming to everything so there is no reason to not jump into the arena.

Croc: Legend of the Gobbos is a winner on two levels for me. It is a game that is very near and dear to me, and the team came back to really make this remaster worth revisiting outside of nostalgia. They reworked the controls, made it look fantastic, and packed it with so many extras it is hard not to love it. This was one of my most anticipated remasters and it did not disappoint.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is an absolute gem of a game and it shines brightest on the PS5. Yep, that feels weird to say since this game is made by team Green; but by leveraging the added tech the PlayStation 5 has the team made the game feel like it was made especially for it. All the work that MachineGames has put into it really made the game shine in a way that; well, it just can’t on the Xbox. If you have been waiting for the PS5 release then I am here to tell you that this game is going knock your socks off and I am not even on a PS5 Pro; I can only imagine how well it handles an adventure of this magnitude.

As a big fan of Into the Bridge, I was expecting more from Grit and Valor – 1949. I ended up enjoying the real-time combat nature of the game even though I was expecting something turn-based. Mechs for me are always cool and some of these had a neat design but the inability to be able to target specific units feels like a huge miss. Grit and Valor isn’t a bad game necessarily it just doesn’t really feel like a good one either; it just doesn’t feel very interesting.

South of Midnight is by far the best game Compulsion has crafted. I love the story, characters, and world. The unique graphics are gorgeous to look at, and the combat is fun and interesting. Being on Game Pass is just the cherry on top. There is a lot to love here and another great game from Xbox this year. Their cadence finally seems to be in place and Xbox owners are eating well. Definitely recommended for just about anyone who enjoys action-adventure games.

The boss fights were a real highlight, it’s a shame the narrative didn’t shine as brightly; but if you are a fan of Dungeon Fighter Online you may enjoy it more than a noob like me.

I wanted to enjoy The Stones of Madness because I really loved The Game Kitchen’s other game series; Blasphemous. Aside from the incredible hand-drawn art style in the Madness game, I wasn’t really a fan of this game. The omission of something as simple and important to tactical-strategy games as the quick save feels like a really big miss. While The Stones of Madness feels unique in its approach to story and indeed the overall mystery; this one just wasn’t for me at the end of the day.

Ninja Five-O is a hidden gem from the GBA that was sadly lost to time. I am thrilled it is now readily available, at least if you own something besides an Xbox. Seriously Microsoft, get this worked out. It doesn’t have a ton of extras that make this package feel as premium as it should, but the game makes up for it. This is a game that deserves to be played, so if you enjoy classic ninja action, this game would make Michael Dudikoff proud.

I really wanted to like Atomfall, as I said that first trailer I was already intrigued by its weird and very British world but its narrative was boring to me. While its visuals for the various zones are drop-dead gorgeous at times, its ‘Leads’ system, while certainly unique; just leads to more frustration that innovation for me. And when you combine that on top of the combat system that has a reliance on melee but then refuses to give you the ability to block an on-coming punch while simultaneously letting you get beat-down by 13 dudes… nah, I had to fall off of this one.

Despite the dumb downed Alchemy and some technical issues, Atelier Yumia marks a great first step towards a new future for this long running series with its fun and rewarding exploration and enjoyable fast paced combat.

33 Immortals isn’t a finished product as of now but what the team has launched with is quite a bit of fun if you can get a room to work together. The lack of any sort of voice communication really handcuffs the MMO-type raid setting that the developers at Thunder Lotus is going for. What the game does have though is a killer hand-drawn art style, a fun and addicting gameplay loop and the benefit of being the only game of its type right now. I hope this recipe is one that sees 33 Immortals make it to the 1.0 finish line and beyond. [Early Access Provisional Score = 80]

I have been a big fan of the Assassin’s Creed games since their inception, back when Jade Raymond was shepherding young Desmond’s journey. It’s been a long time since then and the series has seen lots of changes and to me Assassin’s Creed Shadows marks the best this series has ever been. With its destructible environments, fantastic story and excellent characters, Shadows has managed to dethrone Odyssey as my favorite Assassin’s Creed game.

Omega Force’s attempt to enter the roguelite space with Warriors: Abyss is sadly quite underwhelming. I had some fun battling the waves of demons with the plethora of playable characters. But with some ugly graphics, no real randomization in levels/layout or bosses and limited gameplay features, this one is better left to the uber fans, even at its discounted price.

In the end this collection has one good game, one mediocre game, and one travesty. Of course, I still had to have it. My nostalgia and love for these games includes the trash. For anyone with reverence for these games, this is a solid collection. For anyone curious about the franchise, but the first collection and avoid this one. That original trilogy is still classic. After that, these games went to crap until Crystal Dynamics took over the franchise in 2006. I do hope we see a collection of those early Crystal Dynamics games at some point, especially the remake of the first one, but if you own an Xbox, you can play them via backward compatibility, which is awesome. They still hold up, as for this collection, skip it unless you are just curious about how bad Angel of Darkness truly was.

PGA 2K25 has a lot going for it, with a very satisfying swing system, a competently structured weekly tournament structure in Career mode, and a dizzyingly complex course creation suite. It’s a shame that the game is a bit lacking in the presentation department, with everything outside of the oncourse gameplay feeling a bit shallow in MyCareer. It’s also a shame that this is another franchise from 2K cursed by the scourge of microtransaction based player progression. As it stands, if you’re willing to grind it out and your primary concern is everything from the tee box to the flag you’ll have a great time here. If you’re looking for a more satisfying deep dive into the life of a Tour professional, without the predatory currency shilling, you’ll have to wait and see what they come up with for the next iteration.

I think a big problem here is that this is likely for a younger audience than the original Carmen Sandiego games were for and as someone that doesn’t watch this new show it’s hard for me to tell if I’m right on that assumption. There are weird callbacks to the 1985 original and I’m not sure who that is for? Will children know the number of stories the Sears Tower is? Will they even know Sears? Probably not. It’s a weird pull. Regardless, there isn’t much to say because even with my complaints there’s still a level of charm here. Narrowing down suspects based on clues and then hunting them down is neat and there is some educational value to this game… just maybe save yourself $30 and use your Netflix account to play it on mobile.

Split Fiction is a clear and early frontrunner for my Game of the Year for 2025. Every moment of this game was enjoyable, even just sitting on a bench and overlooking some epic landscape while the characters shared a bit about themselves.

Metal Suits: Counter-Attack is a game that I had never heard of before diving in. I am glad I got a chance to check it out though, as it ended up being one of the better side-scrolling action games I have played in a while. With so much vying for your attention these days, this is one not to miss. If you enjoy stuff like Contra, Broforce, or any game of that ilk, definitely keep this on your radar. It is more than worth your time.

Synduality: Echo of Ada presents an ambitious concept, trying to blend PvPvE gameplay with mech-based combat in a dystopian world. While there are some things that shine, like the strong visual design; it just doesn’t offset how extremely slow and grindy the early game is. For fans of the genre, Synduality might offer some enjoyment, but they shouldn’t expect anything groundbreaking. For anyone else I would wait until there is more of a dynamic and engaging experience, especially when it comes to the slow early game.

Two Point Museum is another great entry in the ‘Two Point Universe’. With each game the team at Two Point Studios shows their growth and as such each one is better than the last. Fans of micromanagement sim style games will find lots to love here, not the least of which is the stellar radio station that plays during gameplay. I am hoping that the team delivers some post-launch content to add some more areas to Two Point County, but even in its base form, I don’t see this one going extinct anytime soon.

It’s a good collection, but it could be even better. It could be great.

Monster Hunter Wilds is an exceptional entry in an already storied and critically acclaimed series. It features some of the most fun and engaging combat in series history and features a high-quality story campaign that’s very entertaining to watch unfold as well as an endgame filled to the brim with meaningful activities.

I enjoyed the original Tails of Iron, its hand drawn art and the story is what really did it. Tails of Iron 2 delivers more but polishes some of the rough edges that the original launched with. The new setting of the game is nice as well as the additions to the combat. The best addition by far is the ability to dial down the challenge, I love that we are seeing these sliders more and more in “soulslike” games. Whiskers of Winter is a solid sequel, even if it played it safe by not really making drastic changes to the formula from the original.

What happened here? Well the original game wasn’t great, so Aspyr definitely had their work cut out for them. You can only polish a turd so much. The new visuals are nice, the content is cool, but playing the game is just a painful exercise in frustration. It is never fun. I was constantly thinking about turning it off. I had to force myself to finish the first level when I started playing. This game is just not fun, and it should be. How they managed to take the easiest layup in gaming, making Jedi fun to play, and completely airballed it. I would skip this one entirely.