Kieron Verbrugge
This lovely-looking indie adventure game exhibits a wonderful sense of imagination and artistry and makes up for any shortcomings with a satisfying journey full of heart
A near-perfectly executed remaster of a contentious-but-stellar classic that manages to feel more modern and relevant than ever
Infinitely charming and unnaturally adorable, Yonder suffers from tedious gameplay but makes up for it with a bold sense of whimsy
Less a game and more of a teaser, Leaving Lyndow ends up making a terrible impression
Sony brings a cult classic to a wider audience but does so with little fanfare or consideration
A handsome and challenging arcade ‘shmup’ with a time-manipulating twist
Yakuza returns to its roots with this pitch-perfect remake of the series’ debut title, brought kicking-and-punching into 2017 with a total facelift and a raft of new content
A trip to the Mushroom Kingdom by way of Ubisoft and the Rabbids, this risky move pays off with an addictive and challenging turn-based strategy RPG full of great fan service and more than a few laughs
Deck Nine’s take on the cult hit episodic series delivers a more grounded experience without losing the compelling drama and hard-hitting emotion
Knack II makes great strides in improving on the gameplay failings of its predecessor, but makes equal missteps in the quality of its characters and storytelling
South Park: The Fractured but Whole goes beyond being just a fan’s wet dream, and is a legitimately great RPG in its own right
Tango Gameworks take another stab at creating a thrilling survival horror title, and defy expectation by applying open-world action philosophies with a great degree of success
Mario is back in his first full 3D adventure in fifteen years, and Super Mario Odyssey is unequivocal proof that the (former) plumber still has more than a few tricks under his hat
This sequel to the VR-exclusive Lucky’s Tale shoulders the responsibility of launching a new Xbox hardware iteration and also proving itself in the world of traditional 3D platformers, and does a spectacularly average job of both
A cute hack-and-slash RPG with a lot of charm that falls short of the mark thanks to its inescapable tedium
Behold, the choice-driven narrative serial killer crime drama party game genre is born
Okami makes yet another return to modern platforms, now supporting up to 4K resolution, but does little else to justify another purchase for long-time fans
Life is Strange’s short prequel season comes to a close in a gripping and emotional finale that represents some of the series’ best writing yet
A pretty but boring infinite runner ported from mobile to console continues to be pretty and boring, only at an even deer-er price point
Ultimate Chicken Horse is an addictive and surprisingly nuanced competitive platformer that shines in skilled online play, but fails as a couch multiplayer game thanks to a combination of a lack of coaching and confusing menu systems that will try the patience of casual players in a party setting. If creating Super Meat Boy-esque levels on the fly to screw over people on the internet sounds like your bag though, this might be the game for you.