For my tastes, Specter himself features the least compelling of the three games’ platforming styles, but it’s not due to a mechanical or half-baked implementation: I just love the original Shovel Knight. As a timed Switch exclusive on a console with what is currently a modest number of games, there’s little reason not to play Specter of Torment unless you’re revisiting Shovel Knight proper via Treasure Trove first (which includes them all). My recommendation? Go for that. These games are worth it.
At the end of the day, Final Fantasy IX is still a terrific game, and unlike many from its era, its core gameplay and plot have aged admirably. Its identity as a pure, classic Final Fantasy isn’t as shiny as maybe it ought to be thanks to indie development and Bravely Default, but it’s an experience worth having nonetheless. I can very confidently say that it’s the definitive version of the game (not that the mobile port is hard to beat), and with asking price, replayability, and nostalgia all considered, Square Enix’s latest classic remodeling is exceedingly difficult not to recommend.
GNOG is thus an imaginative, worthwhile creation, unlikely to win over non-puzzle fans but certain to at the very least charm most everyone else. If you do own PlayStation VR, my gut tells me you'll want to experience GNOG regardless. If not, its mere $15 asking price is, in my view, still plenty justified.
Perhaps it's best to think of it this way: If the occasional AI glitch or incoming onslaught of paid DLC gives you unbearable or unwanted flashbacks to Rome II, then you may want to avoid Attila altogether. But for everyone else, you'd be remiss to deprive yourself of a rich, captivating experience that, though not quite perfect now, will likely achieve true greatness via updates well before its successor arrives.
Pokémon X and Y isn't quite an impassioned love letter to the series, but it's damn close. Players can finally experience this world in full polygonal 3D, and despite its remaining grid-based roots, the sense of freedom and openness is tangible and real.
Yoshi's New Island is more than a love letter to the original game -- it's a worthy successor. There's really no reason to pass on playing it, and if you enjoy the original or feel frustrated by the current side-scroller landscape, then you absolutely can't go wrong by giving this a try.
My one wish to Nintendo is that they either keep the Echoes sub-series going or consider applying some of these changes to new Fire Emblem games; they're really that good, and what's been concocted here truly deserves to be more than a series one-off. The charming, reliquian nature of the nature of the game may not appeal to everyone, but if you like Fire Emblem, strategy, and can appreciate gaming history, then there's absolutely zero reason not to pick this up.
Uchikoshi has insinuated, speaking like a lawyer, that the Telltale-style of the third Zero Escape game may not be his preferred method compared to the visual novels on display with The Nonary Games. It's not clear whether the door has truly closed on Zero Escape in the long run, but in the short term I implore you, if you value plot, character, and sound in videogames at all, to invest in The Nonary Games as soon as possible. It's a choice you won't regret, and were we in a death game ourselves, I'd bet my life on it.
Bayonetta 2 doesn't look like a PS4 game, but you'd be hard-pressed to find anything else wrong with it. Sublime combat meets high-adrenaline action in perfect harmony, resulting in a game that elevates its genre to new heights. The only remaining question is how Platinum can possibly top this with a third game in the series.