Shovel Knight is a game that you should buy, plain and simple. It takes what could have been a simple nostalgia trip to a new level and shows that shovelry is alive and well.
Xenoblade Chronicles X is a masterclass of design that we don't often see in the JRPG genre, and easily stands besides the few heavyweights we've seen so far this generation. Once you get over the hump and understand its systems, X offers a simply huge world to seamlessly explore.
Xenoblade Chronicles earned its cult status on the Wii, and the New 3DS version makes it much more widely available. Aside from a visual downgrade, the handheld port is worth your time.
Finally, a game that celebrates a storied series like Final Fantasy. They leveraged both their own classic mechanics and characters to elevate a solid core, and then made it even better by mixing in some elements from other genres. Final Fantasy fans will surely get the most out of it, but I have no problem telling anybody that World of Final Fantasy is a good time.
Blazblue Central Fiction sits within a strange pocket for me of being so fantastic I can’t help but recommend it. But the trajectory of this series is pretty apparent at this point, and I can’t help but feel like you’ll get an even better experience with being introduced by the previous game and jumping on the re-release this game will inevitably receive. Still, the fighting engine is a work of art and that’s the core of the game. If you won’t be bothered by piecing together the story and no English voicover, you can’t go wrong.
From Software brings the Souls train into the station on a fittingly somber, yet high note with this excellently realized content. The one stumbling block comes from trying new things at a stage where they probably shouldn’t have with introducing the stealth element. nevertheless, as a concentrated showcase of 8 years of Souls and the journey along the way, it’s an excellent send off to the age of fire.
Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2 remains just about the final word in the genre for balance, fighting systems and training modes. Literally the one major stumbling block for this entry in particular is how little it actually offers returning players. Anyone yet to try the Guilty Gear series who enjoys fighting games owes it to themselves to check out Xrd Rev 2.
There are a couple of nitpicks too many against Wipeout Omega Collection from being a flawless package, but the sheer hours of racing that you'll get from the game, how gorgeous it looks and how well the mechanics hold up earn it an easy and complete recommendation anyways.
Housemarque has another hit on their hands, and Nex Machina is probably their best, smoothest and more varied shooter yet. The mechanics masterfully layer on top of each other world on world to keep the crazy action fresh session after session and the entire game has a colourful 90's joy to it that sucks you in. Online co-op being the one nitpick that could come patched in later, I can only wholehearted recommend Nex Machina as the shooter you pick up this summer.
Danganronpa is completely silly, deranged, weird, terrifying, awful, ironic, depressing, hopeful, wonderfully written, emotional and engrossing. It's an experience you absolutely need to try as blind as possible.
The Swapper is simply an unforgettable experience regardless of platform, and though it can sometimes feel a bit alien to control using a joystick, The Swapper is still a journey well worth taking.
LUFTRAUSTERS is a great example of using very old ideas and recycling them in very interesting and fun ways
Atlas Reactor shows that even if there are no new ideas anymore, there are still new ways to use the old ideas and make them interesting again. Continued support and a community will hold it up but we need some serious expansion to really make it great. Even still, what is here is very solid and worth the time of any strategy lover.
Even though firmly rooted in last generation sensibilities for the genre, Tales of Berseria takes something as old and trite as the revenge plot and refreshes it with a gorgeously realized world, filled with three dimensional characters and conflicts and fun combat. Does it break new ground? No, but it knows how to make something engaging from the treaded paths.
Telltale's The Walking Dead: A New Frontier is going to be no more or less than what you expect, for both good and bad. It's great to see a new engine bring Telltale up to more modern graphical standards in ways that only improve the storytelling. You probably know by now if you're interested in what Telltale is selling, but A New Frontier is a great place to jump in.
As a showcase for the Nintendo Switch Hardware, Fast RMX is a gorgeous visual showcase and adapts as easily as the Switch itself to however you and some friends might want to play it, at least as what you want involves straight racing. Never the less, the solid physics behind the racing and the great polarity mechanic make Fast RMX a pulse pounding time.
Toukiden 2 takes a core from Kiwami and makes some subtle changes that develop the whole thing from Monster Hunter clone to something unique in the genre. The new, faster combat is a ton of fun and while cramped controls and limited presentation are there and a bother, they aren’t the end of the world and don’t frequently get in the way of the fun.
Total War: Warhammer II is a fantastic strategy game that shows a deep understanding and even control of the best elements of the genre, but the game demands that same level of dedication from you to get the most out of it. I can't recommend this game as a place to start, but I can wholeheartedly say to veterans and strategy faithful that you'll have a lot to dive in to.
Lost in Blue meets Xenoblade is not a matchup I would have ever thought of, but it's a solid one with a great foundation of fun combat, great premise, amazing music and nice story. The few problems it has are pervasive and distracting, but never enough to really turn you off. While it doesn't have a volleyball character, I'd still recommend it to most any RPG fan.
The Surge: A Walk in the Park shows the team at Deck 13 are getting better and better with everything they develop, and the expansion as well as the base game itself remains compelling enough if you're a fan of the Souls-like. Whatever the team does next, I'm sure they'll bring something even more absorbing than The Surge.