Train Sim World 7 expands the series with better visuals, varied routes, strong train handling, and an excellent Freight Hauler mode. Minor traffic and presentation issues remain, but the overall package is hard to fault.
Ledgerbound feels like a game with a good idea trapped inside an unfinished package. The tactical foundation is there. The customization is promising. The voice cast is excellent. The humor occasionally hits the mark. But the game needs more polish, better pacing, stronger writing, and a much friendlier save system before all those good ideas can really shine.
Expeditions: Samurai isn't quite a finished masterpiece at this point, but it's a very promising foundation, strong enough to make an eventual full release worth seeing.
Doloc Town is a promising farming RPG with a great atmosphere, satisfying progression, and surprisingly fun drone combat. Its rough edges and confusing early game hold it back, but the foundation is strong and worth watching.
OBAKEIDORO 2: Chase & Seek is fun when the conditions are right, but right now it doesn’t have the depth to hold up as a long-term asymmetrical multiplayer game.
Talespinner is a unique entry in the roguelike deck-building space. The presentation, with its folklore inspiration, gives it character, and the combat system is deep enough to warrant experimentation over multiple runs.
Restory: Chill Electronics Repairs is one of the most robust cozy simulation games that focuses on craftsmanship rather than spectacle.
Corsair Cove is a charming pirate city builder with creative vertical construction, rewarding exploration, and addictive progression. A few pacing issues hold it back, but it's still an easy recommendation for management fans.
Blue Reflection Quartet still adds up to a genuinely substantial package for anyone curious about a franchise that rarely gets this kind of spotlight, and it's easy to see why both longtime fans and newcomers keep pointing people toward picking it up.
Splatoon Raiders proves that breaking from the norm can produce something unique for a franchise that might have easily relied on iteration. This bold move adds dimension to the Splatoon universe and sets the stage for further spin-offs. Raiders, alone or with friends, is a vivid, satisfying, and shockingly rich adventure that fits alongside Nintendo's best recent releases.
DragonSword: Awakening offers a surprisingly generous package. It may not be the best action RPG you play in a year, but it is a very enjoyable one, and the fact that you can experience its character collection and progression systems without spending hundreds of dollars makes it stand out. If Hound 13 builds on this foundation rather than abandoning it, the next DragonSword could be something special.
High Times is refreshingly unusual for fans of visual novels who want deep relationships, calm gameplay, and an innovative storyline. It’s not attempting to revolutionize the dating sim genre, but it confidently carves out its own identity with warmth, comedy, and a surprising amount of emotional depth.
Hyperwired settles into a loop that's easy to return to for one more run, then another, then somehow another after that. It's not a game without flaws; the progression systems could use more punch, and the Overcharge mechanic needs smoothing out.
Rhythm Heaven Groove shows the franchise hasn’t lost its rhythm. It’s everything long-time fans hoped it would be, yet accessible enough for new players to enjoy. It’s one of Nintendo’s most charming and consistently fun rhythm games in years.
Dave the Diver: In the Jungle delivers somewhere between 10 and 15 hours of new content. A real story arc with an actual emotional payoff by the end, new mechanics in nearly every direction you look, and a price tag that doesn't ask much for everything you're getting. It's not a perfect expansion; the pacing can feel rushed if you're trying to do everything the village offers in a single day, and a couple of the new systems feel more like padding than essential additions.
Solarpunk is one of those games that becomes more fun the more you play it. The first hours might be boring, monotonous, and at times maddening. Resource limitations, manual farming, and a few quality-of-life restrictions could test players' patience. A few bugs and some unfinished elements give the impression that a bit more polish would do the game good.
Tavern Talk Stories: Dreamwalker holds its own in others. The quest construction, the stat-balancing brew system, and the sense that your choices actually do something give it a layer of involvement that Coffee Talk Tokyo doesn't quite match.
If you’ve played Coffee Talk Tokyo before, it’s like returning to a place where everyone is nice to one another and connects. It’s a terrific way for new players to get started with one of the most popular story-based indie games. It probably won’t be the hardest game to figure out how to play this year, but it might be one of the most significant.
Tales of ARISE - Beyond the Dawn Edition is a terrific game, easily clocking in over 50 hours with the Beyond the Dawn update. It’s ideal for long-time Tales fans and new players who seek a fast way to get into the series. It was released years ago, but it’s still a fantastic example of how to modernize an established JRPG series while staying faithful to its roots.
Mina the Hollower always does an amazing job where it matters. The game is fun to explore, hard to fight, features interesting enemies, and the whole adventure is made special by the burrowing concept. Gorgeous retro graphics, wonderful soundtrack, a ton of material, and a ton of ways to play it again and again; this is one of the best independent action adventures in years.