The bizarre and grim world of the Rusty Lake series has quickly become one of the standouts of the modern point-and-click genre.
With Prey, Arkane cements itself heir to the immersive sim. Exploiting Prey's systems in order to explore and discover Talos I is a constant source of joy, even when the combat and story falter.
Quern – Undying Thoughts is an excellent first-person puzzle game that’s likely to be doubly special to anyone who spent hours with Riven in years past. Reminiscent of both that style of storytelling and of puzzle design, it’s an excellent homage in an era suddenly packed full of Myst homages. A few subpar puzzles and some ill-paced backtracking sometimes get in the way of Quern’s ambitions, but my standard adventure game advice applies: Just check a walkthrough if you really feel the need to. It’s worth seeing through to the end.
Playtonic promised a spiritual successor to Banjo-Kazooie, and that's what Yooka-Laylee delivers, flaws and all. It's a loving throwback to a bygone era and style of gaming.
Everything asks you to contemplate your place in the universe by inhabiting the point-of-view of hundreds of other creatures, plants, and objects.
Rock Band VR's not exactly a must-have, but it's up there—at least for people who haven't burned out on the plastic instrument genre. Me? As long as Harmonix keeps supporting it with DLC I'll probably keep checking back in, snagging a few songs, and putting on a show.
Endless Space 2 is the rare 4X game where the writing is better than the strategy—though the strategy is still pretty decent.
With its unique 1940's monster movie aesthetic and excellent voice casting, Wilson's Heart feels like the first "can't-miss" VR game. Too bad it's a Rift exclusive.
Life is Strange: Before the Storm isn't as groundbreaking as its predecessor, but it's an excellent refinement of those ideas and a solid prequel.
Rusty Lake is as bizarre as it is brilliant, and while Paradise isn't the best of the three paid entries, its brand of Victorian Gothic weirdness is still unique enough to earn a wholehearted recommendation.
Age of Empires: Definitive Edition might always live in the shadow of its younger sibling, but Forgotten Empires has crafted a gorgeous update for diehard fans of the original or simply fans of ancient history. Wololo.
Where the Water Tastes Like Wine's slow pace may grate on some, but those who can acclimatize are in for a fascinating deconstruction of America, as seen through the myths, folklore, and scraps of history we tell each other.
Yakuza Kiwami 2's soap opera story doesn't have quite the same impact as its predecessors, but a much-needed engine upgrade catapults the series into the modern era and makes for a much smoother experience.
Suffice it to say, Mortal Kombat 11 is excellent if you’re in it for the story, and a solid fighting game underneath as well, but the experience is marred by rough edges. Given the state of NetherRealm’s last few games on PC, I’m not sure we could’ve expected much more. If anything, this is an improvement.
Dinosaur-soldiers, character customization, and strong storytelling help Age of Wonders: Planetfall get over the early-game onboarding hurdles and micromanagement woes.
Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey is an impossibly ambitious game, attempting to summarize the whole of human evolution into the span of a few hours—and succeeding to a surprising degree.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare tries to be a serious commentary on present-day conflicts, but is mostly just another Call of Duty game by nature of the series's longstanding blind spots.
Planet Coaster was already excellent at release, but an entire game’s worth of content has been built atop it in the ensuing years.
Jedi: Fallen Order borrows liberally from other games, but a strong supporting cast, clever level design, and a cute little droid companion make Respawn's Star Wars story more than the sum of its parts.
the Wisps is more than the sum of its parts. Is it just another Metroid homage, one among many? Absolutely. I think it’s one of the best-playing, sure, but it’s still well-trod territory of late.