Justin Oneil's Reviews
Overall, EA Sports College Football 27 isn’t a huge leap forward but it has seen mostly positive improvements year over year. The Dynasty mode and Road to Glory modes are now more fleshed out giving you deeper levels of control while both sides of the ball in the gameplay have made upgrades.
While I would’ve liked to see a new 3D Mario for this anniversary, getting to jump back into both Super Mario Galaxy titles was a nice way to celebrate it nonetheless. Despite their age both of these titles still stand out thanks to their timeless level design and cool mechanics. They’ve both never looked better and the controls have transitioned well to the Nintendo Switch regardless of which mode you play it in.
Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening is a fun romp that should please fans of the classic anime or movie but newcomers should find it enjoyable too. It has some annoyances in the level design at times and the controls can be a bit cumbersome at times but none of it hurts the experience much and the presentation really helps carry the whole package.
Drag x Drive is a neat little budget title from Nintendo’s weird side but many things about it may turn someone off from jumping into the court. The unique mouse control method works well but how long you can endure it will vary from person to person. The game also lacks anything to work towards, doesn’t have much to offer for modes or content, and lacks that NIntendo magic visually. I personally would recommend skipping this one for now unless some changes are made to it.
Gears of War: Reloaded is a welcome introduction to the universe for PlayStation players who never played it before but it not being a remake causes it to show its age. The campaign is still fun but the dated enemy AI is frustrating and the visuals, while improved, don’t impress in a lot of areas.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is a remake that remains faithful to Kojima’s masterful original vision while also making it look stunning and play like a modern day game.
Konami and M2 have crafted a fine collection here that any fan of Gradius should check out. With three Gradius titles, three Salamander titles, and Life Force here there is a lot of shoot ’em up gameplay to enjoy even if it is hard as heck.
College Football 26 has worked to improve in most of the right areas over the product that was put on the field last year. Dynasty Mode has brought back a lot of missing features from older entries, the gameplay has been expanded and tuned to give you more options and more fair, and the visual and audio presentation immerses you in the game day experience more than ever.
Sonic x Shadow Generations on the Nintendo Switch 2 is an experience far closer to say the PlayStation 5 version but it isn’t worth double dipping for.
Mario Kart World is hard to not recommend for those who pick up a Nintendo Switch 2 but at launch it doesn’t surpass Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the podium.
Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut is probably still the best place to start if you are new to Yakuza but previous players won’t be missing much. The new story scenes and Red Light mode aren’t worth it in my opinion to pay full price again for this if you played Yakuza 0 before. If you are new though I can’t recommend it enough and the new English voices are a nice addition.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is the best version of the game you can play, that is undeniable. This version cleans up all the performance issues that were present on the Nintendo Switch while also giving a nice resolution boost with HDR. The Zelda Notes feature is kind of useless to me but others may find it helpful.
When I think over my few hours spent with Sunshine Manor, I can’t think of a lot I didn’t like about it. It has a great retro presentation that makes good use of creepy imagery, the sound design is well done, and solving the puzzles never was frustrating. Some may wish it was longer or more challenging but if you just want a spooky adventure to last you a night this is one worth going on.
Gastro Force wears its DOOM inspirations on its sleeve but it doesn’t do anything to elevate itself to being as memorable. It plays well and looks good but doesn’t have enough variety in the visuals, enemies, music, or weapons to really stand out.
Days of Doom has an appealing comic book presentation and some nice ideas but it doesn’t do enough to standout from other tactical roguelites.
Smurfs Kart is a family-friendly kart racer that makes good use of the Smurfs license but runs out of gas a bit too fast. The controls are easy for anyone to pick up, the tracks have some nice layouts, and the characters feel different enough but there just isn’t enough here for modes to make this a must-play for kart racing fans.
Sephonie is an interesting puzzle-platformer but one that didn’t leave a lasting impression on myself. The sci-fi story didn’t do much for me, the platforming and puzzles needed more work to make them more enjoyable, and the visuals aren’t very detailed. There is plenty of options to make it so anyone can get through it but I think there are many better options in the genre out there to spend your time on.
Moving Out 2 provides more variety and adds some new features to improve on what the first game did so well. There is some fun level design across the different dimensions, the writing is funny once again, and there is plenty of ways to play with friends locally or online regardless of their skill level.
Sword and Fairy Inn 2 is a relaxing management game but one that didn’t make the transition from mouse and keyboard to console very well. Navigating menus with the controls here is annoying and while building up your inn is fun for a while, the repetition of tasks starts to set in later on.
Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara is a platformer straight out of the PlayStation 2 era and whether that is a good or bad thing is up to you to decide. While the gameplay and visuals are pretty basic, I enjoyed running and jumping through these levels for the few hours that they lasted.