Even if it didn't have an extra chapter to conquer, Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition deserves a third release. The Switch version has united this modern classic with the TV mode of the Wii original and the fully portable nature of the New 3DS edition. It's truly definitive.
Although Minecraft Dungeons might not have the depth that a lot of hardcore dungeon crawler fans are looking for, it's an easy game to pick up and play at pretty much any point: solo or otherwise. Minecraft has proven itself to be quite the enduring and endearing IP over the past decade, and Dungeons is now partially responsible for that legacy.
Maneater squanders some of its potential, but it's perfect for a rainy weekend when you're craving something original. With some tweaks and patches, it'll have an even brighter legacy; or at the very least, become a cult classic alongside more out-there projects in gaming history like Stubbs the Zombie.
Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix isn't as fully featured as some previous games (Future Tone on PS4 had over 200 songs a few years back), but the DNA is still decidedly Miku.
The Wonderful 101 deserves this new Remastered lease on life after the way it was treated on the Wii U. For nearly seven years we've clamored for a re-release, and now we have it. Go play it this time.
Phantasy Star Online 2 is a difficult game to assess and a hard sell for a lot of people. It can get repetitive and the anime aesthetics aren't for everyone. But like many expansive online projects, the opportunity is there to really get sucked into a new and exciting world. Plus, it's on a console, making it more accessible; true to the original spirit of PSO.
While not all of the wild departures fire on all cylinders, XCOM: Chimera Squad's open-ended difficulty settings allow everyone to bend the strong combat groundwork to their will. Chimera Squad embraces the strange, and is predominately better for it.
I kind of agonized over rating Final Fantasy VII Remake. It's going to garner a lot of discussion from people who are both blown away by the new treatment and disappointed by it, and those feelings are not mutually exclusive. In the end — after thinking on it for some time and removing nostalgia from the equation entirely — I came to the conclusion that this world is full of powerful characters and a setting that's worth remembering: remake or not.
The remake of Resident Evil 3 is going to be divisive, just as the original was.
Releasing the original Panzer Dragoon as a standalone remake is a bold move to begin with. A dual-pack of both remakes could have made a bigger splash, but while we wait for Zwei's re-release to materialize, this is what we've got. Approach it with caution and an open mind.
So far Gearbox is two-for-two on the season pass, but only just.
It took Team Ninja over eight months to get to this point, but we finally have a post-launch DLC that's worth picking up in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: Shadow of Doom. It's a shame it's tied to the other two add-ons in the season pass, but if you're a fanatic, it's probably worth picking up just for Shadow of Doom alone.
Half-Life: Alyx is an accomplishment no matter which way you spin it.
Doom Eternal keeps the strong foundation built back in 2016 intact, while adding some of its own panache in the process. I think we can officially declare that the last iteration wasn't just a lone fluke, and that Doom is back in the shooter spotlight where it belongs.
With the need to go bigger, Ori and the Will of the Wisps loses some of the simplicity and innocence of the original game, but it steps up in turn with bite and refinement. It's the perfect companion to Ori and the Blind Forest, and is an early defining moment of the decade to come.
Granblue Fantasy: Versus might not fulfill your dreams of providing a deep RPG and fighter in one, but given that the bulk of the game is focused on what Arc knows best, it's easier to overlook that sin. Hardcore players might scoff at the lower ceiling compared to other fighters, but there's a lot of potential here, and the meta will only continue to evolve.
Any one of these games are worth throwing 10 bucks at, much less all six. So long as you can deal with some antiquated visuals (even with the new look) and a bit of exploration-based frustration with the ZX games in particular, you'll have plenty of rainy days squared away with the Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection.
I brought up "the old Blizzard" in this review because this is a first time in a while (yes, even counting Diablo III at launch) that you can really sense a huge shift at the company in just about every sense. Warcraft III: Reforged is both the beginning and end of an era. It works to a degree thanks to the immense talent of the original Warcraft III creators and custom map fiends, but it doesn't quite feel like Blizzard, does it.
Despite some technical misgivings, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners honors the Walking Dead name: a rarity in the current climate. It's also cemented itself as one of the leading "full" VR experiences to date. It might not sell headsets, but it'll be a hell of a pickup for current VR-heads.
Like every incarnation of the game, even the Re Mind DLC is going to both confuse and excite people en masse. But now that there's "An Oath to Return" (with a future Kingdom Hearts entry), this is all we have until the next one comes along. It'll do.