Mary Skelter is sublime. By turns darkly sensual and horrific, it's also beautiful, ravishing, and backed by truly expert level design and a clean, clever combat system. This game is too different to effectively compare to other dungeon crawlers, but I must say, of all the many games in this genre that I've played, this one will sit with me for a very long time into the future.
Taken exclusively as a rhythm game, there is so much to appreciate about Metronomicon.
Mario + Rabbids could have been so much worse than this, but somehow Ubisoft's really done something special with it. And, as one of the rare cases where Nintendo has loaned its most precious property out to a third party, Ubisoft has done something that, I hope, Nintendo itself will be proud of.
Quirky and creative, and so very funny, Rock of Ages 2 is unlike many "comedy" games in that it backs the humour up with quality gameplay, very worthy of respect.
Warriors All-Stars is a delight.
Cities Skylines is a ridiculously clever and enjoyable game, and one that I expect I will spend a lot of time playing down the track. EA looks like it will not be revitalising Sim City as a franchise anytime soon, so I'm so glad that another developer has stepped up to the plate and created the game that the last Sim City should have been… and I am so glad it's finally on PlayStation 4.
It's a masterpiece in building tension and in the way that it plays within the classical approach to horror, without relying on jump scares and endless bloodshed.
SEGA's ... given us all something completely modern and "new" to play, and the entire Yakuza series continues to go from strength to strength.
I like my games to have purpose, and I find The Lost Legacy to be a very purposeless game. It's fun, I enjoyed my time with it. I doubt I'll ever feel inspired to play it again, much less remember it.
With the variety in levels, the large number of missions, and the historical depth, I really enjoyed what Sudden Strike 4 had to offer.
I have a great deal of difficulty putting in words just how much I love Hellblade. It's just that powerful.
Patapon is simple, elegant, and utterly delightful.
It is the small, seemingly insignificant details of The Lion's Song that will make you smile the most as you explore the four episodic chapters of the game. It's purely story-driven stuff, but with wonderful characters, all dealing with very real (and easily relateable) creative challenges, this is a game that provides players with a real look into the human psyche, and where the world's great ideas and art come from.
Masquerada is a rare gem of a game in which everything about it comes together just perfectly to give plays a consistent and cohesive experience.
I really like CastleStorm, and I'm so pleased with what Zen Studios has done to make the VR version of it a meaningful upgrade. We're well overdue for a proper sequel though. There's so much more that Zen Studios can do with the base formula, and I really think this has the potential to grow into a very substantial franchise.
It's a little limited for what I ultimately want VR to deliver, but it's worthwhile nonetheless.
Not much has changed in the years since Planet Minigolf, but the not much needed to. This is still an excellent little game, and it's a good fit for the Switch's portable functions.
It's a pointless time waster, but it's a fun way to relax the mind with something mindless in short burst.
Match-3 games are dime a dozen, so it's hard for any of them to really stand out. Boost Beast is another example of that. It's adorable and cute, but with well over 200 levels, the grind becomes real and tiring with three quarters of the game still to go.
It's nice to know that I have a package like this on the console for when I'm feeling nostalgic. And the inclusion of Pac-Man Vs. is an absolute masterstroke of brilliance. That is a rare retro game, and finally having it readily available on a modern console is something that anyone who enjoys local multiplayer should get excited about.