Inconsistent enemy A.I., a bad story, and lackluster environments come together to create a grueling slog of a game
On the surface Hello Neighbor seems promising, but beneath that veneer is a game that doesn't work half the time – and is dull when it does
Despite its stellar premise, One Way Trip is a painfully dull experience that should be avoided by all but the most ardent drug-comedy fans
As fun as popping zombies in beautiful environments is, it's not enough to save Black Ops 3 from being just a miserable little disappointment, a cobbled together version of Deus Ex and Syndicate that can't do right by its pop sci-fi leanings or the series' run & gun entertainment. As someone who's always been an apologist for the series, it makes me a little sad to see that Call of Duty might finally be the creatively bankrupt game everyone believes it to be, unsalvageable even by the grace of Christopher Meloni himself.
The Deer God is, sadly, a mediocre game suffering from an identity crisis hiding inside of a grandiose shell.
A barrage of technical issues and poor design brings the promising thrills of Generation Zero's concept to a screeching halt
A pale imitation of its influences, Earthfall is mostly functional but shows little sign of life
Doom VFR is a short experience that has a couple of high points but mostly struggles to work as both a VR shooter and a Doom entry
Oure is beautiful, but it's dull and cribs too much from its inspirations to be a worthwhile journey on its own
Mr. Shifty has a lot of potential, but is marred by technical issues and a dull endgame
Unlike its predecessor, India is a slog that wastes its beautiful setting
There are moments of absolute joy to be found here, like leading a group of foes into the lair of a beast that will devour them or even juking over an enemy combatant and firing a missile up their exhaust, but they're rare instances, buried deep in the heart of a frustrating grind that doesn't do much to separate itself from the legion of rogue-likes out there. Sadly, in the end Galak-Z is yet another would-be great game undone by a ho-hum execution of ideas that must have sounded great on paper.
My Friend Pedro is a fun little bloody romp that gets tripped up too many times by its frustrating controls
Though Black The Fall's presentation is beautiful, the combination of sluggish controls, trite puzzles, and a weak conclusion makes this journey a hard sell
Orwell is a lukewarm interactive thriller with several moments that hit hard, but it’s inconsistent and some of the writing is laughably bad
A 90-minute action sequence that fails to live up to the promise of the first episode’s ending
The Eternal Castle successfully captures the visual magic of cinematic platforming, but it's unnecessarily frustrating thanks to poor controls
Rust has deep rewards for those willing to put up with its bundle of technical issues, tediousness, and player toxicity
Though Late Shift looks stylish and boasts a clever script, the lack of meaningful choices and a chapter selection drowns its promise
Ultimately, Rise of the Tomb Raider is akin to a direct-to-DVD sequel. It apes the look and style of the original but nothing comes together in a way that's nearly as impressive. I played the reboot four times over and it remains one of the few games I've reached 100% completion, going around and collecting every trinket just because I wanted to explore every inch of its fantastic world. I doubt I'll ever touch its sequel again. It's a decent action-adventure game with some nice moments but it's also lacking in the ambition and artistry embodied by its predecessor. In the end it's merely a fun but mostly forgettable time.