If you aren't too picky and you're in the mood for some old-school RPG action, Aveyond 4 might just be the lighthearted fun you need. If you're a more discerning customer, however, the game's dated RPG Maker feel, lackluster writing and overall been-there-done-that vibe will put you off.
Assassin's Creed Chronicles: Russia continues the Chronicles series' tradition of stealth mediocrity, offering up a handful of uneventful 2D side-scrolling missions. As usual, the visuals are nice and the mechanics are solid, but assassinating people should never be this tedious.
Players looking for a speedy dose of platforming action might be able to find their fix here, but they're going to have to slog through a number of missteps on the way.
If you've got enough patience you'll probably be able to mine for the diamonds in the rough - but the easily frustrated should steer far clear.
Overall, Hidden Dragon Legend is a middle-of-the-road effort: there are certainly a number of people out there who will be able to work through its less-than-polished mechanics long enough to enjoy the silly story, which is reminiscent of classic Chinese action cinema in the best possible ways.
Senran Kagura Estival Versus sure has a lot of fanservice…and, unfortunately, not a whole lot else. If you're a longtime addict of the tongue-in-cheek T&A action here, you may just find enough to enjoy. For everyone else, however, the simplistic beat-'em-up action isn't likely to be substantial enough for more than a quick laugh or two — barely distinguishable characters and repetitive stage design actually make the teenage titillation quite tedious. The presentation, both in the visual and audio departments, has a cartoon energy that leaps out of the screen and the speakers — it's just a shame the gameplay comes nowhere close to matching that level of enthusiasm.
NBA Live 16 has a few new modes and features that help elevate it above last year's offering, but that's practically a footnote when you consider how the game flubs some of its basic controls and AI.
Cyberdimension Neptunia: 4 Goddesses Online is a perfectly serviceable action RPG. That might not sound like a ringing endorsement, but for folks who are looking for a bit of mindless, distracting entertainment (and who couldn't use that with all the things going on in the world today?), Tamsoft's latest foray into this goofy game industry parody should fit the bill nicely. It's certainly not the mark of a masterpiece when the most you can say about a game is that it's fun and mostly inoffensive, but this series has never really been aiming for that high mark in the first place, and that's just fine by me.
If you do like the narrative or can see fit to skip it, I think you'll have a much better time than I did.
The foundation of Episode Gladiolus is excellent, which is why it's disappointing when the adventure comes to an end after less than an hour (not including cutscenes).
At its best, Yooka-Laylee is a fun retread of '90s-era 3D platforming. Unfortunately, it fails to move the genre forward in any significant way, and even brings back several pains that should have stayed firmly planted in the past.
Batman's final Telltale outing — well, for this season, anyway — is a mostly-satisfying conclusion to a fascinating, dark and unusual take on Gotham. It doesn't quite fulfill all the narrative promise of its intriguing themes, but it does wrap things up in an effective enough way.
River City: Tokyo Rumble is a fun throwback to the original's combo of beat-em-up and role-playing elements, even if it's an admittedly one-note experience.
Children of Arkham eventually gets to really interesting places, but it takes them a little too long to get there — and many interesting story threads from the premier aren't given proper attention gameplay-wise or story-wise. Still, it's nice to see Bruce Wayne and Batman taken in such a dark new direction.
Bound is undeniably beautiful, but a chasm between the player and the characters makes it difficult to empathize with them — unless you're willing and able to bridge the gap yourself.
Unfortunately, it’s way too light on narrative to leave much of an impact; for a game about a tournament, it lacks the sort of excitement and tension you’d expect, and even the dating sim elements pay off in thin dividends. Still, there’s enough here for a bit of breezy entertainment, and sometimes that’s all you’re looking for.
Ray Gigant doesn’t play like your average dungeon-crawler, and that’s refreshing, but it also doesn’t do enough to warrant more than a hesitant recommendation. Genre nuts will probably eat up the weird variations on combat and character progression, and I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I found myself enamored with the gameplay. Still, this is far too facile and obtuse an experience to give a hearty thumbs-up — especially with its awkward translation and lackluster visuals.
“Adorable” is about the biggest compliment I can give to Catlateral Damage as a whole. As a cat lover, I relished the chance to vicariously experience the destruction they cause, only to find that knocking things over ad nauseum wasn’t all I thought it would be. In any case, there are plenty of laughs and smiles to be had if you’re of a mind to enjoy this silly “Simulator” stuff, and creator Chris Chung has seen fit to stuff the game with a plethora of cutesy collectibles (including a surprise “Pawlatinum!”). Go in with modest expectations and a lighthearted attitude and you’ll be sure to have a good time.
Nitroplus Blasterz: Heroines Infinite Duel is an admirable effort, bringing together characters from a number of visual novels and gaming franchises and pitting them against each other in a solid, energetic brawler. It's a shame that there aren't more interesting modes in which to test your fighting mettle, particularly when the two story modes offered are so dull and impenetrable, but at least there's some good multiplayer fun to be had — just don't get too interested in completely even-handed competition, as I highly suspect there are serious balancing issues at play here. Still, as a lighthearted bit of fun to enjoy with friends online or locally, there's enough colorful, flashy eye candy here to satisfy casual fighter fans.
Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair is amazingly dumb, which is exactly the reason the series became such a cult hit in the first place. The dialogue and voice acting are awful, the sound mixing is abysmal, the graphics would have seemed dated two generations ago and the gameplay is a simple exercise in mindless destruction. But as with all glorious garbage of this nature, there's a certain je ne sais quoi about the way it comes together — or rather, fails to come together — that makes it perfect for multiplayer hilarity. Leave your brain at the door and you'll probably have a good time.