Joe Morgan's Reviews
Though it lacks the polish of some of its contemporaries, The Surge is a fun Dark Souls-like game with a different setting and some enjoyable new gameplay mechanics.
Reglia is a fantastic strategy RPG with a gorgeous, vibrant art style and excellent soundtrack. It's clearly a labor of love the team at Pixelated Milk has poured their hearts and souls into.
Pyre is a brilliant game with a fantastic story and world building, beautiful visuals, an excellent soundtrack, and fun, clever combat and progression. Supergiant Games continues to impress.
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice has shown that video games are mature enough as a medium to capably deliver an entertaining experience while respectfully tackling difficult topics. It's beautiful and emotionally engaging, worth every moment spent in the warrior's mind.
Tacoma tells an engaging tale with memorable characters. Exploring the abandoned station and reliving pivotal moments alongside the crew has become an experience I won't soon forget.
Bungie's latest entry in the series makes some considerable quality of life improvements for fans while improving their storytelling. Awkward group counts and an unchanged core won't likely win over many converts, however.
Valkyria Revolution should have been a single-season anime. Instead, we've gotten a game that's frustrating on the surface, boring in practice, and infuriating to reflect on. Save both your time and money.
ELEX has some good ideas that will appeal to fans of Sci Fi and Fantasy. Unfortunately, the game is plagued with issues that hold it back from reaching its potential. There's fun to be had here, but the hurdles to get there are severe.
Call of Duty: WWII may not be the best in the series, but it does a great job pointing the franchise back toward the light. Nazi Zombies is a blast, the campaign is entertaining, and multiplayer will keep fans coming back for months...and all without those pesky jetpacks.
Wolfenstein's follow up is a wild ride through alternate history with a healthy dose of gore and absurdity. It has some of the strongest character development and storytelling of any first person shooter in history and, though the gameplay can prove difficult, the feel of combat is fantastic. When you mix in a great soundtrack, top notch visual design, and excellent voice work, you're in for a treat.
For fans looking to dive into a fun, meaty campaign, SpellForce 3 is surprisingly enjoyable, even for newcomers to the franchise.
Iconoclasts is a fun, beautiful platformer with great puzzle design and an engaging, thought-provoking narrative. Be prepared to think critically on multiple levels for this harrowing tale!
Tiny Metal hits most of the high notes nostalgic fans of Advance Wars are looking for. The lack of multiplayer and a few other missteps hold the game back, but turn-based strategy fans will enjoy the campaign scenarios. Beyond that, it fails to innovate on a well-worn path.
Kingdom Come: Deliverance is a fun open-world game with great characters and an expertly delivered story. It has a few mechanics that may turn players off, but they become manageable with a little effort.
Usurper is a fun, atmospheric adventure platformer with a few notable issues holding it back from further ascension.
Extinction is a fun game premise plagued with camera problems, occasional bugs, and aimless mission design. Taking down a 40-foot tall Ravenii can be satisfying, but there isn't much to hang your hat on after that. This would've been much more palatable as a budget title.
Survive! Mr. Cube is a cute, simple rogue-lite that's safe for the whole family. The variety of weaponry and enemies keeps things interesting. Unfortunately, you can finish every task the game has to offer in only a couple of hours and there isn't much to do long-term.
With a wide array of customization options and modes, AO International Tennis had a lot of potential. Unfortunately, buggy gameplay mechanics drag down what could've been a fantastic sports game.
Happy Birthdays is a neat sort of simulation God game where you terraform land to help control the world's temperature, moisture, and more. Watching life grow and flourish based on your actions is peaceful and discovering new creations that evolve over time is fun. It makes a great game anyone could pick up and enjoy, and it's easy to find that you've lost several hours to it quickly.
Azure Reflections is a fun SHMUP that allows players of all skill levels to get a taste of the action while offering quite a few unlockables and customization options. It has a weak story and the campaign will be over quick, so staying power may be an issue for some players. There's something undeniably euphoric about nailing a difficult fight or watching others maneuver through the chaos.