Evolution has always been a core theme of Splatoon. With the online updates, rotating maps, rebalancing, and new weapons; Splatoon 3 is a game that also will evolve; it is an inevitability that it will further improve.
Little Orpheus‘ has a solid enough foundation. It is too bad that there was not enough creativity put into the puzzles or platforming. The imagery is so good that it could have made up for the lack of imagination, but the rough controls and spotty inputs are what prevent it from achieving greatness.
Konami’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection is worth the price of admission. Some are duds, but most of them are excellent beatem-ups and a classic NES game that a lot of gamers grew up with. It’s nostalgia bait, but nostalgia is a valid feeling and can be cathartic- especially when it involves overcoming a game that used to crush you as a child.
Yuoni is a very standard example of the hide-and-seek variety of first-person horror games. It has decent graphics, even on Switch, but the gameplay is stretched incredibly thin and is over before you know it. For its price, Yuoni is a decent diversion. It lacks depth and has a few cheap thrills that make it a casual play for when Halloween rolls around.
If you loved Monster Hunter Rise and wanted more of it, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak is going to be exactly what you want. The dazzling cutscenes for the story and new music are a bonus surprise that add to the scope of the scenario and add a lot of polish to the presentation. The attention to detail is staggering and it will be interesting to see how Capcom will top this in the inevitable sequel.
Which is the better game is debatable- but it is hard to ignore that Door to Phantomile has fewer areas that get recycled, while Lunatea’s Veil constantly introduces new ideas. No matter what, both titles are masterworks and anyone who enjoys Kirby or Nights into Dreams will surely find Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series to be very appealing.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 may not have the same spirit of invention that the first game had which made it such a huge success, but it is still an RPG masterpiece. Anyone who loved the first Xenoblade but had misgivings over some of questionable aspects of the second game (like the gacha mechanics), will find that Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is perfectly balanced and delivers on almost every aspect imaginable.
Metal Max Xeno: Reborn is a highly enjoyable and entertaining JRPG that is stuffed with ideas that mostly work, even if some come at the cost of logic. The story and characters lack presence and it is due to the after thought presentation. The protagonist is borderline mute, and it is jarring when he suddenly speaks and everyone acts normal.
Live A Live is one of the greatest RPGs ever made. Fans of Chrono Trigger will definitely want to check this out and even if you played the original, this remake offers some new additions and adjustments that make it more enjoyable than ever. It is too bad that the localization was bungled in some areas, but this will only affect those who are intimately familiar with the original intent.
At worst, Death’s Gambit: Afterlife is derivative and is getting by thanks to the successes of its contemporaries. Thankfully, the time spent enhancing the vanilla game and rebranding it has paid off. The developers took a flawed and rough around the edges 2D action platformer and made it the very best it could possibly be.
Ground Divers! is stuck in a limbo where it it has the foundation of an addictive rogue-action arcade game, but is held back by unnecessary features. This needed a separate mode where its minimalized or if the options allowed for some tweaking. It has cute anime girls in it and a cool tiger-man, but it isn’t enough to endure the slew of annoyances that get in the way of trying to dig a hole.
Stray may not be for everyone, but it is enjoyable so long that gamers check their expectations before playing. Its got a bit of puzzle solving, chases and simple navigation, but its never demanding much accuracy or dexterity from the player. Merely aim camera and prompt to jump will make cat 100% land on target- anyone can play it.
F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torch is a very solid “metroidvania”; one that anyone who enjoyed Metroid Dread, would find it worth their time. It is not as perfectly polished as Dread, but it makes up for it with its amazing visuals and setting.
FOBIA: St. Dinfna Hotel can be best described as a very competent and enjoyable alternative for gamers who enjoyed Resident Evil 7 or Village. It is certainly not perfect, but has nothing broken about it either. Its story is told effectively and has some genuine scares that will make your blood run cold. Classic horror fans will definitely appreciate what FOBIA: St. Dinfna Hotel offers.
The cast in AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative is full of interesting and fleshed out characters that you’ll care about. Everyone’s motivations are deftly defined and everyone gets a moment to shine. AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative is as perfect as a visual novel can get and receives our highest recommendation. Even ignoring its engrossing story, the gameplay alone is novel and explores concepts rarely seen in games.
The sleek and dazzling Nintendo polish does not disappoint in Mario Strikers: Battle League, and the online felt smooth and responsive even with a subpar connection speed. It could use a bit more variety and some mini-games to add some value, but you won’t find a more intense and in-your-face ball sport than Mario Strikers: Battle League.
It can feel too derivative at times, but Final Vendetta’s adherence to the past has its value for daring to offer something that most devs are too afraid to do. It isn’t the best, but you will likely not find a more spicy and unrelenting beat ’em up than Final Vendetta.
In its current state of this review, Evil Dead: The Game is sorely lacking content and variety, but it does have a lot of potential. A medieval inspired stage called Castle Kandar is going to be included in a future update and who knows; maybe the 2013 remake might get represented one day. There needs to be more fleshed out single player material and different modes for sure.
Every aspect of Card Shark is polished to a mirror sheen. It is one of the most original ideas ever realized recent years and it is executed with extreme confidence and panache. Anyone who is a fan of adventure games will find Card Shark to be an enthralling journey.
Silt is a very solid 2D adventure game. It is elevated by its powerful verisimilitude in its art and gripping sound design. Fans of surreal adventures with a vague story that is open to interpretation and 2D puzzling gameplay should check this one out.