Steven Strom
Yakuza 0 is a fine, goofy, and bombastic entry point for anyone who has wanted to see just what the hell is up with these darn Yakuza games. Buy it.
The slight amount of new content will only appeal to hardcore fans or those who desperately want to play Dream Drop Distance in HD. Skip it.
Nioh makes no bones about standing in the shadows of giants, but it extends and polishes the Dark Souls formula so much that it manages to shine just as brightly. Buy it.
Halo Wars 2's campaign is an exciting enough ride with a very plain final drop. Thankfully, there will be plenty of multiplayer modes to run with what the campaign teaches. Try it.
Night in the Woods wastes just a little too much time before getting to the heart of a story about the value of life when life doesn't seem worth living. Buy it.
Torment's uneven gameplay is pulled to the finish line by its engrossing world and story. Assuming you can get over the introductory hump (and all that text), it's absolutely a story worth reading, if not always playing. Buy it.
Persona 5 weaves engaging JRPG combat around a thoughtful, exquisitely stylish tale of thieves and the struggle to survive in an unfair society. Buy it.
Try before you buy. Thimbleweed Park is an unabashed adventure game throwback with all the good and bad that brings. When it parlays that love of a bygone era into interesting challenges, it borders on great. When it simply emulates the past, it's a real slog.
At its best, Dawn of War 3 is a fast-paced mutation of some of the series' best ideas. At its worst, it can't seem to decide what kind of game it wants you to be playing. Try it.
Injustice 2 continues NetherRealm's tradition of best-in-class story modes with solid, complex fighting to back it up. Learning the ropes could just be a little more convenient. Buy it.
Fire Emblem Echoes is a sparkling remake without much variety or strategy to scratch beneath the surface. Try it.
There's a good game to be built on the bones of Valkyria Revolution, but the game itself is too one-note and ill-considered to get anywhere near it. Skip it.
Randomness keeps Darkest Dungeon's signature grind in a holding pattern, but new content breathes life into the whole experience. Buy it.
Rise of the Necromancer offers a new angle of attack on a great, well-supported game, but it's only worth the investment for dedicated players. Try it.
FFXII: The Zodiac Age offers some fundamental changes to make a great game even better—even if it could have used one or two more minor improvements. Buy it.
Agents of Mayhem has spirit, but not as much as its Saints Row predecessors and not enough to completely outshine the paint-by-numbers design. Try it.
Buy it if you're still on the Brood War bandwagon. Try the free, old-school version if you're just curious how deep your nostalgia is for the game.
Absolver trades in tutorials for mystique, but if you think you can climb the learning curve, you should try it.
Before the Storm is at its best when it focuses on the untold elements of Life Is Strange. So far, those moments capture the spirit of the original, but I'm anxious to see if it can hold up as the timelines converge. Buy it.
There are plenty of better games to spend your time and money on right now. If you absolutely, specifically need an inoffensive couch co-op brawler right now, try it.