With both arcade and story modes, there's a lot of old-school charm to enjoy, but be prepared for some old-school frustration as well
Crazy motorbike obstacles will likely always be fun, but a grindy progression loop drags your cycle into the mud
Void Bastards provides a clever twist on the gameplay model popularized by System Shock 2 and BioShock, now with a procedural element to aid in long-term engagement
Moments of beauty and distantly spaced moments of sublime discovery are separated by hours and hours of tedium and frustration
Borderlands 3 is a love letter to its fans and a celebration of the style of play it first popularized. Filled with characters from previous installments, and unapologetic in its silly humor and bombastic action, it’s an amusing ride that seems hesitant to innovate.
An easy skip, even if you like mecha-infused action
Not as expansive in initial scope as previous expansions, Shadowkeep's standout feature is instead the way it redefines the core loop and encourages week-to-week investment
Somehow simultaneously soothing and thrilling, this excellent arcade-style experience captures the joys of biking, nature, and competing against yourself
Even with occasionally questionable jumping sequences, this emotionally fraught journey is a potent statement on the nature of love, memory, and loss
Too much grinding and a limited array of tactical options hold the game back
Cutesy and clever, this repeatable adventure captures many of the addictive qualities that made its inspirations into phenomena
Innovative mechanics make a strong first impression, but the action, music, and bombastic tone of the narrative all wear thin after a few hours
Inject some much-needed adrenaline and storytelling into the tactics milieu, even if the campaign wears out its welcome
A fantastic cooperative experience that delves deep into one narrow corner of fantasy tropes – the dwarven love of hard work and pretty rocks.
At turns both melancholy and thrilling, Ghost of Tsushima is the open-world action formula at its most mature and immersive. Deep, rewarding, and hard to put down
A worthy homage to the early Mega Man games, but some aspects of retro design would be better left in the old days
Supergiant has crafted another beautiful game, this time a story-laden roguelite that demands dozens of hours to fully experience.
A simple and no-frills action/RPG that ticks all the boxes, so you can keep clicking the monsters.
Equal parts bizarre and good-hearted, Bugsnax is a breezy sequence of encounters and puzzles, but the continual errand structure of quests starts to feel like a chore
An engaging story feels like a turning point in the canon, but the game feels diminished after stripping away roughly half of the locations, activities, and other core content