It's time to step off the hype train
Lost Judgment delivers another fantastic thriller that ups the ante when it comes to its intricately woven plot and interesting cast of characters, all while making you question where the line is drawn between the law and true justice. And when all is said and done, you can sit and celebrate with some sushi.
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania is a roll down retro memory lane with its charming classic arcade format. However, the game soon loses its shine with the sudden difficulty spike that makes it incredibly hard to enjoy in the later levels, despite the inclusion of accessibility options. This is a great choice for a party game when you want a local co-op title, but the lack of online multiplayer means the game begins to feel a little stale when playing alone, despite the wealth of levels, modes, and unlockables.
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars features a striking and quirky tabletop style with delightful gameplay that doesn’t overcomplicate things. While the storyline won’t necessarily grip you, it’s told in a fun and interactive way and this is an easygoing pick up and play title that you can enjoy at your own pace. You won’t be challenged when going card-to-card against your enemies, but you can still find the thrill of a frustrating hand if you delve into the minigame.
Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX is undeniably engrossing and though it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of a modern game, it manages to hold its own due to its sheer charm and enjoyable gameplay. Even if you’re not completely biased because of childhood nostalgia like me, if you love collecting, raising, and battling with monsters, you’ll be hooked from your very first shrine summon.
It’s safe to say that Chocobo GP doesn’t out-do Mario Kart, but then I don’t think anyone would ever really expect it to. Most players, myself included, will simply choose this title because they love Final Fantasy, not because they think it’s going to be GOTY material. It’s a fun kart racer that you can easily while away your time with, but ultimately brings nothing groundbreaking to the genre. If you’re looking for a Final Fantasy fix, it might not quite hit that sweet spot for you, at least, not until you hand over your hard-earned gil for the season pass.
Stranger of Paradise is violent, dark, and brilliantly captivating. It’s a must-play for Final Fantasy fans. Steeped in sentiment and lovingly crafted homages to our favourite games, it offers a new mystery to unravel and breaks the mould of what you’d expect from the series. You might miss having a wide world to explore, proper side quests, and all the usual trimmings, but there’s a lot to love about Stranger of Paradise that you won’t find in your back catalogue of FF games.
If you love the Judgment series, The Kaito Files DLC offers more of the same with enough of a little refresh in gameplay to keep it interesting, and while still offering the usual balance of humour and compelling storyline that Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios has mastered. After all, not many games will have you wrestling in a hot tub with a guy in his underwear while on the hunt for a murderer. Though I would have liked to hit the streets of Yokohama with Kaito or pick up some side cases, it’s an enjoyable experience that left me wanting to spend more time with my favourite flashy-dressed bruiser.
Proof that great things come in small packages.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim has found its perfect home on the Nintendo Switch with its mash-up of two genres that work best when on handheld — visual novel and RTS. I ended up carrying my Switch with me for days on end as 13 Sentinels was like a good book that I couldn’t put down. The gorgeous hand-drawn graphics and intricately layered storyline pair beautifully together to create a love letter to classic sci-fi.
The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story is a killer combination of murder mystery meets TV drama. While the puzzle-solving aspects tend to come with too much unnecessary guidance to help you along, it’s thoroughly enjoyable to be able to channel your inner Poirot and figure out the events of the crime before dramatically unveiling the murderer to all involved. What the game lacks in a challenge, it makes up for with its exciting plot that ticks all the classic whodunnit tropes that mystery drama fans love to see.
Hatsune Miku Project Diva Megamix+ is the perfect introduction to the series for PC. It’s easily accessible to newcomers and more experienced players alike and offers an extensive catalog of songs and customisation items that will keep you busy for hours. The joy of arcade games like this is that they’re easy to pick up and play whenever the feeling takes you.
My Time on Frog Island is a charming little puzzle game with hidden depths. Though you end up shipwrecked there, time on the island feels like a vacation as you settle into the peaceful daily routine of the local frogs. It ticks all the boxes for me — quirky characters, a unique, adorable art style, and a fresh take on the usual puzzle genre with little touches of life-sim elements. You can easily while away your time exploring the island, solving puzzles, and discovering little secrets.
It feels weird to call Endling - Extinction is Forever’s brutal tale enjoyable, but it was. The unique survival gameplay from the perspective of a family of foxes combined with the dark themes and storyline is a captivating mix. Though the gameplay can sometimes get repetitive, and it would have been nice to have a broader range of random events to experience, it’s still one of the more interesting games I’ve played recently. Keep a box of tissues nearby, though, as it’ll punch you right in the heart.
Bear and Breakfast is an in-depth management sim that is all too easy to enjoy for hours on end. There’s plenty of quirky humour alongside an unfolding story filled with mysterious undertones, gorgeous 2D graphics, and classic genre goodness.
Soul Hackers 2, at its core, is enjoyable if you like rattling through dungeons, playing with demons, and building a kick-ass party.
Return to Monkey Island is everything I wanted and more. Daft humour with plenty of dad-worthy gags, puzzles to both frustrate and delight you, lovable throwbacks around every corner, and all while being effortlessly enjoyable. It feels like Monkey Island has fittingly come full circle with this title in many ways, and yet I can’t help but be selfish and want more Guybrush from Gilbert. There’s still room in the scrapbook for more adventures, and if we’re lucky, maybe we won’t have to wait 30 years for the next title.
Harvestella stumbles before it finds a decent pace, with the biggest drawbacks being the slow start and temperamental graphics. If you can get past these shortcomings, there’s plenty to be enjoyed here and a hefty completion time to keep you busy. While it offers an enjoyable blend of RPG meets life sim, there isn’t enough substance on either side to take the game from good to great.
Goat Simulator 3 raises the baaa-r on every level (I can’t help myself, I’ve been playing it for too long and the goat puns have taken over). Everything is bigger and better. A larger open world, more customisation, more to unlock and do, we’ve finally got online multiplayer with fun minigames, and there’s just more overall general goaty goodness. Though you might encounter the odd glitch or two, it doesn’t detract from the gameplay, and you’ll brush it off as easily as your ragdoll goat getting back to its feet after crash-landing from the top of a never-ending beanstalk. Even if you’ve never been tempted by it before, I can’t emphasise enough how strangely satisfying it is to unleash hell in goat form on an unsuspecting city.
The Devil in Me is an excellent evolution in The Dark Pictures anthology that weaves an interesting story in a complex and exciting environment that’s both fun and horrifying to explore. It’s the perfect choice for horror fans, full of tense moments, jump scares, and gory scenes. While some of the new features are a little hit or miss, it’s arguably the best title in the anthology. It could do with a little more polish in places, but it’s a game I am keen to replay to delve into the background story further, and hopefully, next time, I’ll ensure everyone lives.