Bubsy 4D appears to get the joke. The never-a-mascot bobcat has been around for decades, scraping for relevance. While this game isn't revolutionary, it's a competent platformer that will likely garner Bubsy a few new fans.
Luna Abyss crafts a distinctly bizarre, moody universe using the framework of a first-person shooter. Through all its familiar elements it blends genres in delightful and surprising ways, constantly surpassing expectations.
Directive 8020 is very much a Dark Pictures Anthology game through and through. This sci-fi entry isn't vastly different enough to alter Supermassive Games' formula but steps in the right direction still make it an entertaining horror to play with company.
Call of the Elder Gods pulls from Lovecraftian mythos to create a pulpy puzzler that works to build off of 2020's Call of the Sea. However, its intense head-scratchers with complex solutions can often clash with the pace of a relatively short adventure.
Crimson Desert is a dense, daunting game that rewards players who invest with dedication. It is also a game that has immensely changed at launch and will continue to evolve through the efforts of Pearl Abyss and its community. While certainly flawed, it is a thing of awe.
The Spell Brigade separates itself from the pack of Vampire Survivors-adjacent games by letting up to four players engage in unruly, wave-based chaos. However, the power climb is locked behind a steep grind that takes too long to feel rewarding.
Aphelion treads familiar waters for anyone who has played an action adventure game in a post-Uncharted world. But its emotional and grounded narrative about the search for hope is potent enough to look past many shortcomings.
Life is Strange: Reunion attempts to tackle the difficult task of wrapping up the loose end for two beloved characters. Max and Chloe are the highlights of a weaker entry that struggles to navigate its simplistic gameplay and less important subplots.
Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss revels in the player working to unravel the unfathomable in Lovecraft's influential universes. This is a game about eerie atmosphere and piecing together mysteries, taking players on a claustrophobic journey through infinite horrors.
Pragmata shines as a new IP that rarely plays it safe. Confident in its vision and unique third-person hacking combat, Capcom uses the relationship between its two protagonists to deliver an action game with plenty of heart.
TAMASHIKA is undoubtedly a surreal, bizarre game that uses psychedelic visuals and whiplash action to funnel players into a flow state. Yet it is a game that also feels intimately familiar and natural to the roots of the FPS genre.
ChainStaff embraces the past to fuel its patently insane premise, execution, and creature design. This is one weird game that, through its minor annoyances, should delight retro fans seeking an 2D shooter that frequently surprises.
Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is a welcome addition after the Soul Reaver games received the treatment. Though fans may wait for Blood Omen to have its moment, having this 2003 with a suite of upgrades could make it palatable for newcomers to be drawn into the Legacy.
Despite Marathon being a punishing crucible that will throw players to the wolves, its uncompromising vision can't be denied. Bungie's peerless gunplay makes this extraction shooter shine in a bleak alien world where players hunt each other for personal gain.
In the transition to fully three-dimensional worlds, Super Meat Boy 3D does a phenomenal job at retaining the blistering challenge of the pioneering original. While nearly everything is retained in the dimensional shift, a few unique issues do hold it back.
Dying Light: The Beast Restored Land continues Techland's tradition of meaningful post-launch content and support for its games. Here, players can tackle Castor Woods with a new hardcore, solo survival mode along with a slew of updates for the base game.
Minishoot' Adventures avoids being a shameless ripoff of classic Zelda by incorporating twin-stick shooter elements into its fluid gameplay. The result is a brisk adventure that constantly feeds rewards and surprises to the player.
John Carpenter's Toxic Commando is as over-the-top as its name implies. By introducing just enough twists to a tried and true formula, it's hard to resist the allure of four friends banding together to eviscerate hordes of monsters.
Sumerian Six fills a very niche hole that few developers have capitalized on. Its six characters and complex maps give players a wealth of options to creatively take out power-hungry Nazis, where careful planning is the best reward.
Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf delivers emotional gravitas through its gorgeous world, expressive characters, and moving soundtrack. Rich gameplay and clever puzzles cement its place along the best platformers of its kind.