Dangerous Driving completes Burnout's revival, but not flawlessly.
'What Ails You' takes The Enemy Within's biggest and boldest step yet toward redefining the Joker's role in the Batman universe – should you choose to push him in that direction (which I did). It's the other characters whose final impacts on Bruce Wayne/Batman's life have yet to be determined.
RAD is deeper and more challenging than it looks, making it a super fun post-apocalyptic adventure that's always fresh.
Hitman 2 is like a hearty stew: not pretty, but so full of nutrition that you're bound to walk away full and happy.
Twelve Minutes injects a compelling time-loop mystery into a traditional point-and-click adventure game to create original gameplay that complements its story's curiosity factor.
The Ancient Gods Part 2 is a challenging, smart conclusion to Doom Eternal's story arc.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare's varied gameplay modes and excellent gunplay suggest the series is headed in a promising direction.
Danger Zone 2 is exactly what I wanted the first Danger Zone to be: the true follow-up to Burnout's classic Crash mode that EA won't give me. It's not as fully fleshed out or polished as my dream game of this type would be, but as a self-contained and one-note smash-up it shines like a spectacular fireball explosion. Now how about reviving the rest of Burnout? Road Rage mode, anyone?
I wish I'd been given the chance to actually solve more of The Riddler's puzzles on my own – adventure games are traditionally all about that, after all – but the tension and drama that permeate The Enemy Within's first episode make it a winner. This strong start also leaves me very excited to see how John Doe's inevitable transformation into The Joker plays out, and morbidly fascinated to see what scars this version of Gotham City will leave behind on its inhabitants.
Luigi's Mansion 3 is so fun, charming, and smartly designed that I hope we get more than three of these every 20 years.
If you go into A Way Out thinking its mandatory two-player co-op is a gimmick, you'll likely come out of it realizing that it couldn't have been done any other way. Vincent and Leo's journey will have you and a friend performing tasks together both mundane and dramatic, and the result is a memorable, variety-packed cinematic adventure that feels like what Telltale's games might've evolved into if they'd leaned into game mechanics instead of phasing them out.
Moss made a wonderful first impression and never let up. Spending four hours with Quill in this VR world was a joy, and no one element or environment type wears out its welcome. Its mix of combat and puzzles hooked me quickly, always kept things fresh, and left me wanting more.
You certainly get your $20’s worth out of Thimbleweed Park. The voice cast doesn’t elevate the script in the way they always did in the LucasArts “talky” days, but an enjoyable, self-referential story and hundreds of puzzles to solve make it worthy of a place on your shelf next to Maniac Mansion and Monkey Island.
Rock Band 4 makes smart choices in bringing the series back, even if its setlist is somewhat disappointing.
BioShock Infinite's final DLC brings brilliant closure to both Rapture and Columbia.
Titanfall excels at making every moment and every action a fun one. It is a breath of fresh multiplayer FPS air.
State of Decay's unique gameplay remains intact on Xbox One, as does its jankyness. Nevertheless, don't miss YOSE.
NBA 2K14 on PS4 & Xbox One is not only a great basketball game, it's a showcase for your new console.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder looks and plays like the true next step for 2D Mario platformers. Wonder effects change each stage in both surprising and delightful ways, the Flower Kingdom makes for a vibrant and refreshing change of pace, and Elephant Mario steals the show.
Return to Monkey Island expectedly comes packed full of smartly crafted puzzles, funny dialogue, and memorable characters. But as series creator Ron Gilbert returns to the series’ director’s chair for the first time since 1991, it unexpectedly offers a lot of heart, too. It is an adventure gamer’s delight.