Brakes are for Losers is a fun throwback to the racing games of yore. Fans of RC Pro Am or Super Sprint ought to feel right at home once they stop freaking out about having a basic racing control pulled out from under them. Single player has a number of good modes for practicing, but the game really comes to life in multiplayer. If you are like me and are constantly on the lookout for local multiplayer titles, this is an inexpensive way to add a fun title to your library.
Tera is a six-year-old MMORPG that is showing its age, but not in the way you might think. While the combat and dungeons are fast and fun and have been translated to console successfully, the over-world has been sliced and diced in a manner that removes most reasons to visit it. If you have a group of friends and you want to run through the game, quickly leveling up and taking down giant monsters, Tera will be a blast. But if you actually enjoy the journey to the endgame, good luck. Tera has lost its patience for players like you.
City of Brass is the sort of game that certain gamers will treasure. It is a beautiful, well-polished first-person rogue-lite that will not hesitate to regularly reward diligent players with a quick and horrible death. City of Brass is not for the faint of heart, but for those that put in the time to hone their skills, the rewards of City of Brass are great (and I'm not talking about the in-game treasure). A visual treat, City of Brass never feels unfair, and learning to overcome its many challenges can be vastly satisfying.
Killing Floor Incursion reminded me of the old Mr. Toad's Wild Ride at Disneyworld, in the way that it careened wildly from place to place, oscillating between thick tension and psychotic action, keeping me totally amused and off balance. From some of the best (and well-earned) jump scares I've experienced in a game, to one of the greatest boss fights in recent memory, Killing Floor kept me gasping and laughing for its entire duration. The tension ratchets unbelievably high, and the simple act of peeking around a corner can lead to coronary trauma when you realize that something is standing right behind you. Like any good rollercoaster ride, Killing Floor Incursion delivers the chills and the fun in equal measure, and is well worth the price of admission.
The new Star Trek: The Next Generation DLC for Star Trek: Bridge Crew offers even more of what made the base game fun: fantasy fulfilment and the chance to tool around the universe with some buddies on a Starfleet vessel. While there isn't a ton that makes Bridge Crew feel different, it is fantastic to have some new enemies to fight, and fun to figure out how to navigate some new wrinkles in the bridge positions. After all is said and done, this DLC gives me more of what I love, and kudos to Red Storm for taking on that challenge when I thought they had abandoned the game and moved on. Now, can I get some Cardassians?
Defender's Quest represents something new and unique. By dipping the tower defense “chocolate” into some RPG “peanut butter”, Level Up Labs has created a Reese's Cup-level classic. Defender's Quest: Valley of the Forgotten DX' gameplay is rock solid, reflecting the six years of refinements that the small development team has made to the core title. If you have any interest at all in the tower defense genre, you owe it to yourself to check this one out.
Dark Souls Remastered is a nice, shiny new edition of a game that I have never enjoyed. While I respect the game's genre-creating precision gameplay and acknowledge it's place in gaming history, I just don't like this game, and can't recommend it to new players. That said, it plays fine, and looks better than it ever has. Dark Souls fans already know who they are, and will enjoy this new edition immensely.
If Rick & Morty: Virtual Rick-ality were a discount title, I would say "Take a look, but keep your expectations in check." However, this is one of the more expensive VR titles, and the brevity of the story combined with the frustration of some broken mechanics make this a mixed bag. The game is fun when it is working correctly, and the world building and writing are top notch, but don't expect to spend more than a couple of hours in Rick's garage, with some of that time spent wrestling with broken mechanics.
If Rick & Morty: Virtual Rick-ality were a discount title, I would say "Take a look, but keep your expectations in check." However, this is one of the more expensive VR titles, and the brevity of the story combined with the frustration of some broken mechanics make this a mixed bag. The game is fun when it is working correctly, and the world building and writing are top notch, but don't expect to spend more than a couple of hours in Rick's garage, with some of that time spent wrestling with broken mechanics.
Conan Exiles is one of the most disappointing games I have played this generation. I have not experienced another game on PlayStation 4 as broken as Exiles. It is hard to believe that a game could be released for purchase in such bad condition. In another genre, the bugs in Exiles might be fun or amusing. In a survival game, they are crippling. Gamers deserve, and should demand, better.
New Gundam Breaker is such a bad game that it makes me feel bad for Gundam fans. I picture a 12-year-old Gundam fanatic that has saved up weeks' worth of lawnmowing mowing money, sitting with a controller hanging loosely in her hand, staring at the screen and crying. This is a game that should never have come to market, regardless of how much hard work went into its creation. To ask anyone to pay money for New Gundam Breaker is outright offensive.
Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy give you a tremendous amount of bang for your buck. The three games contained within are long, detailed and beautiful, and they feel right at home on the Nintendo Switch.
By alternating between quiet mood-building moments and "Did I just see that?" religious horrors, The Exorcist: Legion VR delivers chills that are every bit up to the standards of the franchise.
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus plays great on the Nintendo Switch, though if you have a chance to play the game docked, it is definitely the way to go. But either way, New Colossus is an amazing game, with a rich universe, gonzo cinematic storytelling, and great-feeling combat. Not having played the first title is no reason not to jump into Wolfenstein II, and the Switch is a completely viable way to experience the touching lunacy of this series. Highly recommended.
With a unique presentation unlike anything I've seen before in gaming, Salary Man Escape creates its own singular vision of workplace hell. But with frustrating controls and a bordering-on-broken physics model, the stellar puzzle design is lost in a mire of irritation and exasperation. If I wanted to feel stressed, I would just go to work.
Smooth and beautiful to look at, VSR: Void Space Racing packs a difficulty curve the likes of which I have never experienced in a racing game. It is best to go into VSR with the mindset that you will not be playing a racer, but a whole new genre. Even with that in mind, I would expect a large percentage of players to bounce off of VSR the same way that my racing ship bounces off of space debris. This is a game for dedicated, patient players.
Crush your Enemies! is a fun strategy title on Switch that fills a need that I didn't realize I had. By cutting out a lot of the hoops RTS players are accustomed to jumping through, the shiny core of the genre is revealed.
Playing Another World feels like more than a dusty visit to the video game museum. It is something more akin to an exciting examination of modern gaming's DNA under a powerful microscope. For those interested in the origins of Souls games, rogue-likes, and cinematic adventure games, this is the place to look. Be ready for some wonky old-school controls and bewildering level design, but know that working your way past those limitations is absolutely worth it.
Detached is a great spacewalking simulator, with gameplay that has obviously been built up around that mechanic. While some of the more “gamey” elements might not be up to snuff, you can't argue with the feeling you get when you leave a ship and are floating freely in space. Expect to be mildly frustrated with the lack of direction and irritating checkpoints. But also expect to be awestruck by the superb visuals and setting. Detached is a mixed bag, but the spacewalks alone are worth the price of admission.
Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate is a game that is sure to please hardcore Monster Hunter fans, and will likely bring many new fans into the hardcore fold now that they have gotten a taste via Monster Hunter: World. While the graphics are strictly handheld-level, in the heat of battle you simply will not care. Players should be ready to plumb the depths of much more complicated crafting and material gathering systems, but the combat is very recognizable to fans old and new. This is one of the biggest and best games on Switch, and regardless of how long it takes to ramp up and get going, Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate should not be missed.