Teardown has some genuine moments of chaotic fun that are sometimes interrupted by long periods of tedium and some minor performance issues.
Salt and Sanctuary checks all the boxes for what a 2D Soulslike should have but doesn't do much beyond that, delivering a worthy, albeit conventional addition to the sub-genre.
Roller Champions loses its momentum too fast, but provides great bursts of genuine fun along the way.
Dolmen relies too much on the Soulslike playbook to be much of anything other than a middling iteration of the formula.
The solid story, good graphics, and decent amount of content make SpellForce 3 Reforced a reasonably good time if you can put up with the side effects of it being forced into a console experience.
DNF Duel’s approachable take on the genre might hold it back for some, but will likely hit the sweet spot for many newcomers and mid-level players.
Arcadegeddon has solid gun play mechanics and a setting that most will appreciate but its generic structure and lack of enemy variety hold it back from truly shining.
Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series is an excellent remaster that more or less, manages to honor its source material.
Loopmancer doesn't get enough right to make up for its shortcomings, but certainly has some bright spots that roguelike enthusiasts will appreciate.
Hard West 2 brings the original game's ideas to full fruition while sacrificing very little in doing so.
Despite some decent combat and sustainable charm, Rumbleverse has very little going on to hold your attention beyond one or two sittings.
Midnight Fight Express is a surprisingly fun and rewarding beat-em-up that gives you more choices than you might expect.
Madden NFL 23 is the best of the last several entries, but by lacking the overhaul it really needs, it only achieves so much.
Destroy All Humans! 2: Reprobed has been brushed up nicely despite some inconsistent performance and prolific bugs.
F1 Manager 22 does a decent job learning from other management simulations but only rarely feels like a step forward for the genre.
Despite dropping the ball in one of the most important categories for a modern fighting game, this is a fighting game that stands out from the pack, plays great, and honors its source material more than it needed to, and that certainly counts for something.
Biomutant still sits in the slightly-above-average tier of its genre, albeit much more confidently than before.
NBA 2K23 does a good job with introducing some cool ideas into its stubbornly lackluster larger format.
SBK 22 has a solid core for fans of the sport who want to sink time and master their bike, but it's not a game you're going to want to go into blindly.
While the characters and story don't do enough to push it over the top, Soulstice delivers a great action game that just about anybody can enjoy.