From the first 30 minutes, I knew I was going to want to marathon The Outer Worlds 2 as often as possible, as Obsidian has done it again.
The original Plants vs. Zombies that started it all is back, but this remaster could use a few more tweaks before it's ready for primetime.
Platinum Games and Team Ninja have resurrected this once-great 3D franchise for a new era.
Double Fine is back, and this time they're putting you in control of a sentient lighthouse.
Little Nightmares continues to enchant fans.
I'll be playing Hades 2 for the rest of the year. It has its hooks in me, and unlike a lot of other genre staples, I haven't exhausted everything there is to do yet after a handful of runs. It's an excellent year for gaming, but it just got even better with the full release of this surefire classic.
Hollow Knight: Silksong has a long road ahead of it, and I'm ready to follow it on its entire journey. Whether that includes a swath of free updates just like the original game, or potential DLC, I'll be there. In fact, I'm still there, slowly chipping away at a 100% completion rate. I won't be putting this one down for weeks.
Still, if you haven't tried Kirby and the Forgotten Land yet, now is the perfect time to do so. You'll be able to experience the Star-Crossed World story in tandem with the core campaign, or ignore it entirely if you wish. Along with the enhanced Switch 2 performance, this modern Kirby classic will live on for another generation.
Rogue Prince forges its own identity.
After playing a ton of Jamboree TV, I came back mostly satisfied because of the injection of extra minigames it adds to the base game.
The open-ended nature of the game is key.
Elden Ring Nightreign is an "all-stars" imagining
While I get the skepticism over a VR Batman game (I was unsure how this would actually pan out when it was announced), Camouflaj has more than proven that they are a major player in the VR AAA space, and Oculus Studios has yet another feather in their cap with Arkham Shadow.
Astro Bot on PS5 feels like the culmination of every Team Asobi project before it. Given how many mascots Sony has lost over the years (this game’s constant cameos certainly reminded me of that!), I’m completely on board with them adopting the little bot as their new face. They’ve earned it.
I think that’s the biggest point here, is that even though my expectations were high, Shadow of the Erdtree still managed to exceed them. From Software probably could have just added more Elden Ring and that would have been solid enough, but instead, Shadow of the Erdtree is yet another innovative iteration of the genre.
I was pleasantly surprised by Princess Peach: Showtime, and the aforementioned unpredictability is a huge reason why it will likely remain in my permanent rotation of Mario games going forward. I’d love to see Nintendo give more mascots a showcase like this, with a similar go-for-broke variety format. Keep ’em coming!
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth somehow manages to spin multiple plates without smashing any of them. It’s over-the-top serious when it wants to be, and it’s utterly absurd in the next moment. Great Final Fantasy games have always managed to walk this line, and it’s a testament to how the brand has stayed relevant for decades on end.
Most WarioWare fans will likely want to pull the trigger on this one, but I don’t blame you for being wary. There’s a lot of give and take here, especially with the heavy motion focus.
It’s abundantly clear that this series isn’t over yet, and I hope that Insomniac never really stops working on superhero games. There’s so much of the Spider-Man mythos that’s untapped so far, and you could keep this gravy train running with some crazier ideas once this presumed trilogy is over. As long as Insomniac is on board, I’ll be along for the ride.
After playing through High on Knife (and thus, a much more stable build of the game), I feel like I’m game for a sequel. It’s clear that the team can carry on without Roiland, and I’d like to see them tackle the old-school FPS genre again with all the tricks they’ve learned along the way (and a little more polish).