That is about all there is to Nioh 2: The First Samurai: a few new missions, a few new skills, and endgame content geared almost exclusively for the top 1% of players. The Season Pass of the game is worth it for the first two DLCs, but the third DLC is so incredibly limited that you have to be a Nioh die-hard. If you are a Nioh die-hard, The First Samurai gives you more things to test your skills on and more ways to optimize your builds, and it's good at that. If you just want to put your Nioh 2 skills to the ultimate test, there is a lot here to potentially kill the heck out of you.
Spirit of the North: Enhanced Edition is a beautiful remaster of an average game. If you enjoy wandering around pretty environments and solving some light puzzles, then this is a fantastic "chill out" game, but anything beyond that is somewhat forgettable. Add on some frustrating bugs and the lack of meaningful improvements over the last-gen version beyond visuals, and it isn't a must-buy for anyone who has played the original title. It's worth experiencing if you haven't played it before, but you should perhaps wait for a price drop, since the $35 price tag isn't worth it when you can purchase a last-gen copy for $20.
Empire of Sin has potential, and I look forward to revisiting it after six months of patches that will hopefully address some of these issues. As it stands today, the game is buggy, poorly balanced, and blatantly half-finished. The initial strong presentation quickly fades to frustration as playing correctly is a fool's errand and cheating the system is the only way to play. That might be appropriate for a Mafia game, but not for this title.
It may not sound like it, but I enjoyed many aspects of Cyberpunk 2077. It doesn't hit the highs of The Witcher 3, but it still has a lot going for it. However, it was released in such an unfinished state that it's hard to give it a positive review. It's an 8.0 game hiding in a 4.0 game wrapper.
Haven is a cute and enjoyable mix of light survival, light RPG, and serious romance novel. It's exactly the kind of game to play if you want to relax for a few hours and see adorable people being adorable. The surprisingly enjoyable RPG combat and gentle survival mechanics make the game feel more like a game, while at heart it is closer to a visual novel. If you like warm and fuzzy feelings, Haven is a great choice, as long as you don't mind the occasional risqué dialogue.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is an incredibly successfully follow-up to Hyrule Warriors, and in my opinion, it's the best Warriors title to date. It may lack the sheer unbelievable amount of content that Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition has, but what's available plays excellently enough that I didn't mind one bit. The only thing holding it back is the inconsistent frame rate and the innate repetitive nature of a Warriors game. If you liked Hyrule Warriors, Warriors games, or Breath of the Wild, then Age of Calamity is a must-have.
Overall, Immortals: Fenyx Rising is a good game. It's a shameless clone, but it's fun, and it's clear that Ubisoft's take on the formula was done with enthusiasm. If you were disappointed that this year's Breath of the Wild game was a Dynasty Warriors title, then Immortals might scratch that itch. It's always going to live in the shadow of the games that inspired it, but sometimes, all you want to do is climb some cliffs and slay some monsters, and Immortals provides exactly what it promises.
At the end of the day, Godfall is a game with a dull story, boring world, uninteresting loot, and simplistic combat, but it looks pretty and feels nice to play. It's not a bad game for a quick playthrough, but it's not something that is going to keep your attention for very long, despite theoretically being designed for loot-grinding fun. Considering the new game price of $70, it's difficult to recommend Godfall, even if you're very hungry for a new game for your PS5. Once it comes down in price, it'll be easier to justify picking it up for a mindless hack-and-slash weekend, but at the moment, it doesn't do enough to really be worthwhile.
Ys Origin is a solid port of a solid game. The somewhat dated visuals and basic gameplay don't hide the generally strong game design. It never reaches far beyond the level of "pretty good," but it's still a blast to play. If you've never played any of the Ys titles, then Origin is an excellent place to start. If you have, Origin might seem too basic compared to some of the more recent offerings, but it's still well worth a look.
Pikmin 3 Deluxe is a solid Switch port of a cult Wii U favorite. While the core game hasn't changed much, the UI interface updates do a lot to make it more enjoyable to play. The addition of two-player co-op is a game-changer if you have a gamer in your social bubble, and the feature elevates Pikmin 3 Deluxe over the original. Pikmin 3 remains a calm and relaxing game about walking through outdoor areas, collecting fruit, and sending hordes of adorable plant-men to their gruesome deaths. If you've ever wanted to try6 the series or if you liked the original Pikmin 3, Deluxe is the best way to experience the game.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon is a wonderful addition to the franchise. It hits the mark with a likeable new protagonist and an engaging new combat system without losing what makes Yakuza great. It suffers from issues like a low difficulty (another Yakuza staple), but it features top-notch humor and charm. If you like Yakuza, then you'll like Like A Dragon. It is everything that makes the series great and is one of the freshest entries since Yakuza 0.
Wintermoor Tactics Club is a safe, comfortable, and perfectly enjoyable tactics game. It's not ambitious or particularly challenging; it's a game that is pleasant to play but will probably be overlooked in favor of bigger titles. I absolutely recommend giving it a shot if you enjoy tactics games or want to try out the genre. Sometimes it's fine to just be a solid title without breaking the mold.
Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory is a perfectly competent Kingdom Hearts rhythm game and not a lot else. Despite being canon to the series, its bare-bones plot is barely relevant, and the thin story is mostly a reason for more music. Thankfully, the core rhythm gameplay is fun if not particularly new or exciting. If you like Kingdom Hearts music and rhythm games, Melody of Memory will scratch the itch, but don't expect much more.
Assassin's Creed: Valhalla is a mostly solid, if somewhat unambitious, Assassin's Creed game that is dragged down by a shockingly poor PS4 release. I look forward to seeing how it runs on a PS5, but the last-gen version is hard to recommend due to the sheer amount of issues that I encountered while playing through the game. If you discount those issues, Valhalla would be a comfortable 8.0, but one can't just ignore those issues. Fans looking to continue the franchise's story should wait until Valhalla receives a series of patches or until they can pick up a next-gen version.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV is a rather bloated blockbuster crossover event that's shaped like a JRPG. If you're a die-hard Trails fan with a deep love of the franchise, then seeing your favorite characters interact will probably make up for the somewhat disappointing story. Anyone else should stay far away until they've played the first three Trails of Cold Steel main games in the series, and looking up the other games in the franchise couldn't hurt. I had fun with ToCS4, but it's a bit of a mess, and your enjoyment will depend on how much that mess appeals to you. I still have a soft spot in my heart for the series, but I can only hope the next game is more focused than this offering.
Nioh 2: Darkness in the Capital is a solid and enjoyable DLC. It doesn't really break the mold but offers a healthy helping of new Nioh 2 gameplay. The somewhat forgettable stage design is strongly bolstered by some amazing boss fights and the new Fist weapon set. It's a great way to further extend the absurd amount of content in Nioh 2 and its DLC. Starting a new game with the Fist weapon set would be a great way to revisit the title. The DLC won't freshen things up if you're already burned out on Nioh 2, but sometimes, "more of the same" is all a DLC needs to be.
Star Wars: Squadrons is exactly what it sets out to be: a modern revival of the old-school Star Wars flight simulators. It isn't particularly ambitious, but it is a lot of fun. Just being able to zoom through the wreckage of a ship battle while trying to get a bead on that darn X-Wing is enough to keep your attention for a while. The game lives and dies by its multiplayer, and hopefully the community is thriving for a while. Do you want to pilot an X-Wing? Then Squadrons is the game for you. Die-hard simulator fans might find it to be too simple for their tastes.
Ultimately, Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning is a bare-bones port of a solid, if unexceptional, game. Amalur is the kind of game that got overshadowed when it was released, and it seems just as likely to get overshadowed now. If you're a fan looking to revisit the title, this is a good experience, but it's not meaningfully different from what you might have played almost a decade ago.
While the presentation of the story and combat in 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim takes some time to get used to, I was deeply engaged with the characters and plot. The bulk of my complaints boil down to wishing the combat looked better and not loving some of the reveals, neither of which detracted from the rest of my experience with the game. As long as you approach the title as a visual novel with some light strategy rather than a strategy game with some light story, you'll find a lot to like. It's an easy recommend for fans of Virtue's Last Reward or Steins;Gate or those who have enjoyed previous Vanillaware offerings.
In the end, Super Mario 3D All-Stars is a perfectly adequate collection of three very good games. Even if Sunshine isn't to your taste, Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy are two of the finest platformers ever made, and they absolutely make the collection worthwhile. The only disappointment is that not enough was done to adjust and touch up the games for the Switch. Despite that shortcoming, there's hardly a better bang for your buck on the Switch than Super Mario 3D All-Stars, and it is a must-have for any Switch owner. Just remember that for some reason, it's only available for purchase through March 2021.