Creaks renovates a well-worn genre, delivering one of the most satisfying indie puzzle-platformers in some time. Between its stunning visual and audio design, absorbing world, and perfectly-balanced puzzles, it's hard to find serious fault with any part of this game's construction. If you're a fan of puzzles or Amanita Design's past games, you need to grab a flashlight and delve in.
The most underappreciated Souls game is ready to take its place atop the pantheon. Demon's Souls has always been one of From Software's most intricate, atmospheric, and satisfyingly-challenging games and Bluepoint's technically-impeccable remake elevates it to a new level with beautiful, fluid visuals and an assortment of smart gameplay tweaks. All From Software fans need this game, and even those who have struggled with their games should consider giving it a try. Once you start playing Demon's Souls you'll be hard-pressed to exorcise the game from your PS5.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land is one of the absolute best first-party titles the Nintendo Switch has to offer. The game feels great to play, looks wonderful, and introduces a vibrant and surprising world packed with new mechanics, challenges, and content. Kirby fans have been waiting a long time for his first 3D game and Forgotten Land truly is the pink one's Super Mario 64 or Zelda: Ocarina of Time, so puff out a sigh of relief and eat hearty.
Master Detective Archives: Rain Code may tame Danganronpa’s anarchic spirit slightly, but it also greatly expands and improves on its formula with a more developed world, bold visuals, refined gameplay, and the best collection of whodunnits writer Kazutaka Kodaka has delivered to date. This is, simply put, one of the best, most ambitious visual novels in recent years. Get in on the ground floor, because Master Detective Archives has all the makings of a killer franchise.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder is the plumber’s best platformer this generation. We haven’t been able to say that of a 2D Mario for a long time, but this game measures up to the best and most beloved side-scrollers Nintendo has ever made, delivering joyously-creative level design and rock-solid platforming in a gorgeous wrapper.
A Way Out is an impressive achievement that definitively proves creativity matters more than bloated budgets and big-name franchises. A technically accomplished, endlessly inventive co-op masterpiece, A Way Out will surprise and excite you from beginning to end. This one deserves to be a breakout hit.
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire is an exceptional roleplaying experience that truly lets you forge your own path in a rich, multilayered, grog-soaked world. Occasionally the game is just a touch too retro for its own good, but, for the most part, Pillars of Eternity II proves Obsidian has set the right course. It's clear sailing ahead for the classic computer RPG.
The debut episode of The Walking Dead: The Final Season is one of Telltale Games' best efforts in quite some time. It builds its cast of likeable new characters with uncommon skill, lets you feel a glimmer of hope, and then tears it all down in devastating fashion. I'm afraid of what might come next for Clementine and AJ, but I can't look away…The Final Season has already sunk its teeth into me.
Book of Demons is rather brilliant in its own small way. It strips the Diablo formula to its bare essentials without sacrificing any of its appeal. In some ways, it even improves on Blizzard's series. If you're a busy adult pining for your 90s gaming heyday, Book of Demons is a must play, but really, everyone ought to give it a shot. This deceptively addictive dungeon crawl is worth getting fired up about.
Once you check in, you won't want to check out. Luigi's Mansion 3 is a vibrant interactive CGI movie, beautifully-designed brainteaser, and top-notch action game, all rolled into one. The game isn't perfect, but its frustrating moments are brief and don't tarnish the experience as a whole. Luigi's Mansion 3 stands shoulder to shoulder with Switch must-haves like Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey – it's scary good.
Streets of Rage 4 doesn't reinvent the wheel, but honestly, that's okay. The game's dazzling visuals, silky-smooth action, varied level design, and sexy sense of cool more than make up for a few minor old-school irritations. Veteran Bare Knuckle brawlers will get the most out of Streets of Rage 4, but it should provide a satisfying thumb workout for players from all eras.
Crusader Kings III pulls off a difficult dual victory, bringing a new level of depth, charm, and polish to the franchise, while also making it far more approachable than before. Some aspects of Crusader Kings III still aren't as user-friendly as they could be, but overall, this is a worthy heir to the throne.
Hitman 3 is the definitive case for careful refinement over needless reinvention. While not that fundamentally different from its predecessors, Hitman 3 has been polished to a high sheen, offering up fantastic frictionless stealth gameplay and an eye-catching array of unique, exciting stages. At times it's felt like luck was against this trilogy, but Agent 47 would be proud of how IO Interactive's well-laid plans have come together in the end.
Resident Evil Village is a wild, thrilling ride across seemingly every horror genre and idea that happened to pass through the mad minds at Capcom. Not every aspect of the game is perfect, but its highs are very high and solid core mechanics and excellent presentation hold the grisly patchwork together. You may survive Resident Evil Village, but your thoughts will linger there long after you've escaped.
Mario Golf: Super Rush is the plumber's best sports outing in a good long time, featuring smartly-revamped core mechanics, beautiful, varied courses, clever new modes, and a single-player Adventure full of fun twists. The game may be a bit light on content (something Nintendo is promising to address with free updates), but aside from that, Mario's form is close to flawless this time around.
Stray may be small and scrappy, but it’s also beautiful, lovingly crafted, and bounds from one genre and play style to the next with impressive grace. Even cat skeptics ought to be won over by the game, so don’t be afraid to invite this Stray in from the cold.
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist is an engrossing social sim that offers up deep roleplaying and a wonderfully-realized universe, with fun collectible card game mechanics as a bonus. Perhaps more importantly, it’s one of the best distillations of growing up I’ve ever encountered in a video game. It doesn’t matter if you’ve left the era long behind, don’t miss out on getting these teenage kicks.
NBA 2K23 builds on last year’s rock-solid entry with some well-considered on-court changes, a deeper, more satisfying career mode, and an array of accessible nostalgia-tweaking content. Most refreshingly, almost none of these additions are designed to push extra spending. If Visual Concepts stays hungry, NBA 2K23 could be the beginning of a new dynasty that would do its cover star proud.
Bayonetta 3 is the series’ best entry yet, offering an engaging universe-hopping story, bombastic cinematic moments, and refined action that’s both accessible and deeper than ever before.
Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon’s restrained tone and quirky dual-character mechanics won’t immediately connect with everyone, but you owe it to yourself to give the game a chance. Bayonetta Origins eventually comes into its own in a big way, delivering escalating action, compelling character development, and expertly-executed fan-pleasing moments en route to a satisfying finale. This tale of friendship is the perfect companion for Bayonetta 3 and may even win over those who haven’t been bewitched by the franchise in the past.