Not every single aspect of Everybody's Golf hits the mark, but so, so much of it does. It gets the most important parts right, and I'm hopeful we'll see some quality-of-life updates and advanced control options before long to help close the gap. Clap Hanz has dreamed up a wonderfully warmhearted game, one I encourage every would-be golfer to consider picking up.
Those complaints aside, I enjoyed my time with The Mummy Demastered from near beginning to end. (My initial playthrough took four hours but I still have half of the 50 optional "relics" to suss out.) This game doesn't do anything meaningfully new or original for metroidvania fans, but everything here is solid and WayForward got the fundamentals right... in a licensed Mummy adaptation, of all things.
The Snipperclips DLC makes an already sweet game even sweeter. Most of the new levels slot perfectly into the existing package, bringing fresh ideas that feel right at home without covering too much of the same ground as before. If you're picking up the all-in Snipperclips Plus bundle, it can be hard to tell where the original game ends and the DLC begins -- it's that seamlessly integrated.
As much as I loathe this implementation of loot boxes, I still keep playing Battlefront II and I will probably continue to do so on and off. I mean, I do like the game. I just wish it wasn't being squandered like this. You'd be well-advised to wait until overhauls arrive -- assuming they ever do.
Even if the game doesn't bring anything wholly new to the table for Portal fans and it leans on some filler toward the end, on the whole, I had a darn good time with this spin-off.
The Inpatient is a much quieter game than Until Dawn. It adopts a straight-faced tone, opting for psychological horror rather than grisly thrills. There's nothing wrong with that approach, but coming off the last game, it took some adjusting. I couldn't help but wish it was more, well, exciting. It's a technical marvel, but at times the experience feels hollow and uneventful. In the end, even though I'm glad to return to this universe, The Inpatient comes across as a bit of a missed opportunity.
Subnautica works brilliantly as a serene, lonely, contemplative adventure. It's one of those rare games I'd take to a desert island.
I sincerely hope Polyarc is successful enough with Moss to make a sequel, because I'm not ready to say goodbye to Quill. This could easily be a flagship series for PlayStation VR.
As far as I'm concerned, The Behemoth is now four for four. And while Pit People doesn't quite nab the crown as my new favorite game from the studio, I love the risks it takes to shake up strategy RPGs. It's a wild, creative, occasionally erratic game. Pit People is imperfect, but it's so worth your time.
The foundation is great. The fundamentals are there. It doesn't take much imagination to see how this game could blossom into something magnificent. But so long as it's missing long-term depth and incentives to stick around past the first few weeks, Sea of Thieves will feel like a missed opportunity.
Ikaruga is one of those games I'll happily rebuy and replay every time there's a new port, but with this Switch version, I should be set. Being able to easily bust out the Joy-Con controllers for co-op and flip the system on its side for a vertical screen orientation is the real deal. Ikaruga is a timeless classic, and for those of us without a swiveling monitor, the Switch is just about the ideal way to experience it.
I still think there's fun to be had in PixelJunk Monsters 2, and I won't be surprised if Q-Games cleans up some of the minor frustrations. But unless the studio goes out of its way to expand and experiment with new content, I don't see this having much of a legacy. As it stands, it's an okay-at-best tower defense title that treads familiar ground. Coming off the original, that's a huge downgrade.
House Flipper manages to scratch a specific itch, but it lacks long-term incentives and just generally feels like a missed opportunity. With more content, polish, interactivity, and customization, this could become a nice sleeper hit. It's serviceable as is, but it won't hold your attention for too long.
I think the developers made the right call by branching out with planes and boats and going for a more approachable play-what-you-like format. They just spread themselves too thin trying to cram it all in.
While this DLC has the kind of silliness I'd like to see the Far Cry series confidently embrace and it mostly sounds good on paper, the end result is bare-bones. Lost on Mars feels like a middle-of-the-road effort when it could've been so much more substantial and imaginative. The premise deserves better.
If you enjoyed the original or skipped it purely because you needed online multiplayer support, Overcooked 2 should be a no-brainer. While the sequel runs the risk of being slightly too familiar and lacks any big surprises, it's still a winning formula. Co-op gaming doesn't get much better than this.
In the end, Death's Gambit resonates as a flawed gem, one I'm happy to have played. It's an uneven experience bogged down by technical woes and stilted combat, but if you can enjoy less-than-pristine games in spite of rough spots, it's worth taking a chance on. Just hold out for a few patches first.
All told, Surf 'n' Turf is a great little expansion, perfect for Overcooked 2 fans who want to feel more challenged. I was worried it was going to be too short or too similar, but none of those fears panned out. The levels are tightly designed and genuinely satisfying to solve. This DLC is peak Overcooked.
Some people will be disappointed by the lack of competitive modes, and that's fair enough, but don't let their omission bring you down too much. Tetris Effect isn't intended to be a heated head-to-head sort of game. It's more sentimental. Whether you've loved Tetris since the '80s or you've never quite meshed with its status as an all-time classic, you should be able to find something to latch onto here. Seasoned players can tweak the settings just the way they like and tone down the visuals. Newcomers can crank up the extravagant effects and relish the whimsical atmosphere. Everyone wins.
While I'm happy with what we got, I ultimately can't help but wonder what another six months could've done for Battlefield V. In a business with virtually no downtime, that's just the way it is.