Unfortunately, Niffelheim does not possess enough visual appeal despite its gorgeous hand drawings, nor enthralling mechanics or ease of access for non-genre enthusiasts like myself.
Despite some of the non-enthralling parts of the farming and cooking, they are still fun enough to keep me repeating them over and over and continuing through the game, even if the plot lost my interest pretty quickly after the excessively long prologue and first few days getting oriented on the island.
While imperfect and still missing some of what made the original game a total masterpiece, it is both a worthy successor and a game worth waiting 18 years to finally have.
Whether you have nostalgia for the original or not, SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated is a genuinely worthwhile game to pick up in 2020 and enjoy. It offers enough to do to warrant the price tag and is certainly a step-up in terms of presentation compared to the original. While it doesn’t offer much new, what it does offer is a great looking, smooth playing action-platformer from the tail-end of the Golden Age of Collectathons.
If you have not experienced The Messenger yet, there is no better time than now. Its unique and witty take on a tried and true genre is challenging and fun with nice replayability. Never frustrating and always asking you to improve your platforming abilities, the 2D platformer is one of the best of recent years.
Skater XL doesn’t have to be for you. It’s a simulator with innovative physics-based mechanics in a genre that has long been built around arcade-style unrealistic tricks, racking up points, and nailing huge combos. If you’re looking for that classic experience, you’re best waiting for Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 + 2. But, if you’re somebody who loves customizing and living your best-simulated life with no need for objectives to complete, this is absolutely the game for you.
If you are looking for a new challenging game to take on with a unique take on a tried and true genre, UnderMine is absolutely a must-play. Especially as a day-one Xbox Game Pass release, there is simply no reason not to go spelunking in this well-crafted, deep, and challenging game. With its unique take on roguelike combat mechanics and an array of resources and stats to balance and manage, UnderMine is a great place to start for newcomers to the genre and players looking for a serious challenge alike.
Super Mario 35 is fun and a novel idea, but it falls short with its main battle mechanic feeling like an afterthought during play. The extra enemies on screen add some fun tension to this ultimate classic, up until the late game stagnates and stalemates.
Already on track to be the Assassin’s Creed game I sink the most hours into yet, Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla is excellent in many ways, but flawed in just as many others.
I think Planet Coaster: Console Edition is absolutely a worthwhile port. It manages to take an immensely complicated game and package it into something it was never designed to fit into. Just come in with a healthy serving of patience and willingness to forgive some glitches and issues, some banal and some a bit rough, especially if you are free playing and not in pre-built scenario parks.
Space Invaders Forever is a nice celebration of the franchise. Space Invaders Extreme and Arkanoid vs. Space Invaders are both quite fun and could make for great occupation on a long trip or while trying to kill time. They’re quite replayable and offer challenges in a tight package. Space Invaders Gigamax 4 SE is hardly even worth a glance though, and makes the $30.00 price tag a bit hard to justify.
Calico is nothing grand or over the top, but that’s the point. This small, quaint game is filled with lovely people and adorable animals for you to pet, collect, and ride as you resolve simple tasks and sell cute pastries in a beautiful little world.
Super Meat Boy Forever is a fun and just-challenging-enough platformer with endless replayability and lots of polish.
While I have been rather harsh on a many aspects of Rhythm Fighter, overall, I enjoy the game thoroughly and recommend it to enjoyers of rhythm games and roguelikes alike. It’s a creative blending of the game types that isn’t overly complicated in its mechanics despite a steep learning curve for its controls.
The Unexpected Quest was unexpectedly charming and quite fun to play. Its toybox feel and unique blend of resource management, adventure, and puzzle-solving elements made my time with the game quite fun and enjoyable to look at.
As Yacht Club Games’s first non-Shovel Knight IP, and as a work of individual love and passion developed over many, many years, there has been a ton of hype around Cyber Shadow among lovers of indie platformers. Cyber Shadow does not disappoint. While its simplicity compared to another recent Ninja Gaiden-inspired game may leave you wanting a tad more, the game as it is is challenging, creative, and absolutely a blast to play.
New Pokémon Snap is not perfect, but it is far and away the sequel to the 1999 classic we have all been waiting for. While I wish some pacing issues and nitpicks with what is no longer in the game have influenced my enjoyment, overall, I cannot wait to spend countless more hours perfecting my photography skills and engrossing myself in this absolutely stunning world.
“Wrath of the Druids” is an excellent DLC. It does everything right in setting the new locale apart from its neighbor to the east while delivering a strong new plot and set of characters. Not every new mechanic feels fully realized, but for what they do offer, I enjoyed them and particularly enjoyed the way they played into the greater mythos and context of the game as a whole. If the remainder of Assassin’s Creed Valhall‘s major DLC—and future Assassin’s Creed stories, for that matter—follow suit, I’ll be very glad for it.
Miitopia is a simple RPG with a few very unmodern character-creating mechanics. Whether you are charmed by Miis or not is certainly your own prerogative, but the gameplay itself is perfect for beginner RPG players with its focus on relationships between your party members. Longtime RPG players may find a good time in its relative simplicity.
Knockout City is, indeed, a knockout. It’s absolutely a blast, and despite some small issues, it’s an entirely creative and sharp concept and execution. I only hope the fun lasts after the initial buzz and free play period dies down.