Kirby Star Allies is a fun entry in the traditional Kirby series. The co-op is fun, the CPU controlled helpers are competent, and the new abilities are a blast to use. Sadly, the length of the game and the lack of difficulty-scaling for bosses in multiplayer make it just shy of living up to its fullest potential.
While levels may feel stale later on and combat could be better, The Adventure Pals is still a solid platformer with tight controls and an incredibly imaginative and humorous world that is more than worth checking out for its price.
Intrigue allows players to choose from 20 governments each with their own perks, special events that can reward unique ships or even destroy one of your planets, and is primarily a positive game changer for Galactic Civilizations III. Commonwealth are a neat idea, but sadly end up becoming more of a nuisance than an ally.
Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 and 2 contain a great set of games. The Switch version is the definitive version of the first Legacy Collection with Legacy Collection 2 following along in its shadow. Rewind is a great feature, while armor mode is lacking any sparkle. If you're going to pick up this collection, digitally is definitely the better offer.
Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 and 2 contain a great set of games. The Switch version is the definitive version of the first Legacy Collection with Legacy Collection 2 following along in its shadow. Rewind is a great feature, while armor mode is lacking any sparkle. If you're going to pick up this collection, digitally is definitely the better offer.
Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection changes how we view game collections by making the match making experience streamlined instead of having us go to each game individually. The museum has an incredible amount of care put into it with even the concept art of the first game available to look through. Digital Eclipse has outdone themselves with an incredibly humbling anniversary collection.
West of Loathing understands the stylistic charm that a unique aesthetic can provide and that stick figures are still, at the heart of everything, rad as heck. While the combat system is lacking, hilarious storytelling and a dynamic world make up a wonderful stroll through the western-styled landscapes.
The Lion's Song is a beautiful narrative-focused game if you get passed the sluggish cursor and the slow character movement. Each episode contains its own beautiful story which are woven together to form a satisfying conclusion. Any fans of the art scene in the early 20th century or anyone hungry for a good narrative should definitely board the train on this one.
20XX isn't just a good Mega Man X clone, it's an insanely fun and addictive roguelike with plenty of personality and possibilities. Each run is different from the last, and each death feels fair and justified. I'm confident that 20XX will only become better over time and be a shining example of how to do platformer-based roguelikes.
Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 isn't just a collection of faithful ports on new hardware, it's a mix of some of the best Mega Man games with plenty of love and goodies. The addition of medals is a great way to encourage players to fully explore every title, and X Challenge is fun, if not disorganized at times. For players new to the Mega Man X series, this is where to begin.
Star Control: Origins successfully grasps the perfect balance of serious and silly while making an engaging universe that's fun to explore. The voice acting is wonderful, the script is brilliant, and the fleet battles are short, sweet, and exciting. With an in-depth crafting system, a living universe, and a multitude of choices that subtly affect the story, Star Control: Origins soars.
Mega Man is back in his best entry in over a decade. The controls are tight, the quality of life changes such as button mapping Rush Coil, Rush Jet, and sliding are more than welcome, and the Double Gear system becomes second nature quickly. While the main game may seem short, and a lack of fan-favorite characters is disappointing, Mega Man 11 shines in everything it does include. This truly is the triumphant return of the Blue Bomber.
Jackbox Party Pack 5 delivers on another great set of party games. You Don't Know Jack returns better than ever, Mad Verse City has the potential to create plenty of laughs, Zeeple Dome is a successful experiment, and Patently Stupid mixes drawings and prompts in the most clever way yet. Even though Split the Room may be the least exciting of the bunch, it has its own charms and feels more like a "worst of the best" rather than anything less than good.
With three titles of great quality being redesigned to be beautiful even by today's standards, the Spyro Reignited Trilogy burns bright. Little touches such as a unique design for every Elder Dragon, an attention to detail in the aesthetics of the levels, and a dynamic music system breathe life into what was already a lively collection. Spyro is back, and his games are exactly as good as you remember.
Hunter's Legacy: Purrfect Edition fixes several of the issues the original game had by adding a much-needed minimap and making enemies more reactive to your attacks. However, the sound design on Ikki herself is still irksome and the game is a far cry from what it could be. I'd love to see what Lienzo does with Ikki in the future, but for now, Hunter's Legacy: Purrfect Edition is just OK.
Coffee Crisis takes the interesting concept of the classic beat ‘em up with a metal and coffee theme and attempts to run with it, only to trip over itself with a questionable implementation of modifiers that can't be selected normally, as well as bare-bones combat. All of the pieces of a quality beat ‘em up are present in this game, but it's not quite put together yet.
My Time at Portia is not just a simulator, it's an adventure game loaded with things to do, people to talk to (and potentially romance), ruins to explore, and things to create. It's an addicting romp that keeps you playing the next day in hopes of finally completing that one goal only to create another one in the process.
ChromaGun VR doesn't do much to improve on 2015's puzzle shooter, and the game takes a hit both visually and in performance in its attempt. The mechanics work fine, but bland repetition of puzzle elements only hit a few primary colors rather than the rainbow of features to keep this an engaging experience all the way through. If you haven't played ChromaGun yet, this may be the way to experience it, but otherwise, you're fine with sticking to the original version.
Metagal tries to be a Mega Man homage, but instead comes off as a semi-decent clone with very few original elements. The ability to play as different characters later on is a neat twist, but it doesn't make up for the lack of sound design polish, inconsistent difficulty spikes, and the lackluster choice in specials weapons. For the asking price of $5, however, Metagal may be looking into for scratching a micro-sized Mega-itch.
Swag and Sorcery flirts with both micro managing and idle mechanics without excelling at either. While it's initially engaging, its main gameplay becomes stale quickly leading to a grindfest where the reward is more grinding. You'll eventually encounter overwhelming enemies and bosses that require more grinding, but little to do while you wait for your heroes to return from their journey.