Engaging combat, a beautiful world, and intriguing story moments ensure Avowed is an action-RPG worth exploring, but tiresome encounters, progression quirks, and dull companions keep it from achieving divinity.
While the returning sniping and stealth mechanics keep Sniper Elite: Resistance on target across some good open levels, the lack of innovation means it is not a surefire hit for everyone.
Although the abstract portions of Discolored 2 might be too elusive for some, the more direct puzzles fare better across the 4-5 hour journey, along with some active threats that create pressure.
Indiana Jones makes a triumphant return in the Great Circle thanks to a stellar cast, good puzzles, gameplay variety, attention to detail, and solid technical performance. It is a must play for fans of the whip-cracking hero, and adventure gamers.
Despite the tremendous atmosphere, big open world, and familiar mechanics, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is an uneven experience due to AI flaws, combat annoyances, laborious exploration, and technical issues.
Stealth fans might find enough entertainment in A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead, thanks to moments of decent immersion and sound manipulation, but inconsistent and shallow mechanics hold it back.
With a wonderfully diverse campaign, hyperactive multiplayer, and a super replayable Zombies mode, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is a brilliant showcase and the best franchise entry in a while.
Despite excellent facial animations and wonderful music, Double Exposure has pacing issues, unlikable characters, dire gameplay, tonal problems, and is an incomplete imitation of the perfect storm.
Aside from some bland combat and performance concerns, Silent Hill 2 is a good remake that takes the original's intriguing narrative and crams it with more survival-horror gameplay while upgrading the visuals to do justice to the fascinating setting.
Sumerian Six almost perfectly emulates the games from Mimimi, offering a satisfying covert strategy experience that involves weaving through patrols, dissolving bodies, and scaring Nazis to death.
Despite great visuals and hectic combat, Space Marine 2 stumbles on its repetition and generic missions. While co-op has limited appeal, the single player is boring and the competitive action is mostly an afterthought. And even devout followers may lose faith due to the technical issues.
The criminal undercurrent in Star Wars Outlaws creates an enjoyable and unpredictable story, and the competent stealth, gunplay, and space dogfights ensure that fans of the original trilogy will enjoy the stunning views while earning a reputation.
There is a moderately intriguing narrative in Thalassa: Edge of the Abyss as you solve mysteries within a well-preserved shipwreck, but flimsy clues, tedious wandering, and technical blemishes mean playing it can be like fighting to keep your head above water.
Anger Foot's rapid-fire, door-kicking action will compel some to dance along to its vibrant beat, but repetition and lackluster levels mean not all will be swept off their feet.
Aided by its magnificent setting, purposeful suspense, and slick pacing, Still Wakes the Deep is a nicely crafted first-person horror game that needed more complexity.
With neat retro visuals, smart puzzles, and an interesting theme park location, Crow Country is an appealing survival horror game that suffers a little from clumsy action and minimal challenge.
Harold Halibut overstays its welcome like a free diver that descends too far. Its painfully boring gameplay consists of walking back and forth as the story unhurriedly transpires. Still, the oddball characters and sublime stop-motion aesthetics may hook a few gamers who are happy to wade in the shallows.
Although the Australian setting is good, and it occasionally shows potential, Broken Roads is a clumsy party-based RPG with mediocre combat, pacing issues, and bland fetch quests.
While some walking sims have evolved, Open Roads is stuck in the past. Its two good characters cannot offset the bland interactivity and mystery that is as flat as the game's 2D conversations.
Underneath the spaceship setting in Between Horizons is a grounded detective game that features good logical deductions and math-based solutions. More case depth and presentation tweaks could have taken the mission further, but it is still a fine option for the gumshoes of this generation.