Take an indie platformer like VVVVVV or Downwell and up the ultraviolence, that's Shotgun Cop Man.
Not hard enough to be a challenge, but not painless enough to be relaxing.
With its emphasis on crafting and trading rather than action, Last Epoch puts the cart before the horse.
With its emphasis on roleplay rather than combat and borrowings from Disco Elysium, Sovereign Syndicate feels like another step forward for the CRPG.
Rogue Trader gets 40K's atmosphere right, but it's buggy and the rules are a mess.
Oxenfree 2 is a more mature second run at the walk-and-talk formula.
Like a Miyazaki-movie love of food, from the glorious ramen Mr. Saitou slumps next to at an izakaya to the strange confectionery available at a convenience store run by fungus. And the RPG Maker interface that you'll need to hit F11 to force into fullscreen. And a soulful bittersweetness that means it's likely to, cliché as it sounds, make you laugh and make you cry. At least a little bit. It's not the full emotional rollercoaster of Rakuen—it's more of a bite-sized experience, a quick ghost train through a bouncy castle where you can whip to the last stop in a single sitting if you want.
If you found Slay the Spire's oppressiveness off-putting, Mahokenshi's easier and dressed up in a pretty kimono.
The knockabout glee of classic Saints Row ultraviolence is here, but held back a little by new-found restraint.
An evocative life-sim RPG you won't want to wake up from.
Better than Borderlands 3, but not quite reaching the heights of Borderlands 2 at its best.
At its best when it's strangest, Inscryption doesn't know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em.
A long game of choose-your-own-chosen-one with high highs to balance the lows.
A better Warhammer game than the last few.
This three-games-in-one package is convenient, but I can't help thinking these games deserved to be remade separately over several years, ditching stuff that doesn't work like the minigames, reinstating cut content and filling gaps rather than just draping shinier skyboxes over them. Still, ME1 is better than it used to be. It's no longer tempting to skip straight to ME2, though once you leave the Citadel you should stick to the main questline and only do side missions when your squadmates ask. And play as a woman if you want to hear a really great voice performance.
Action so intense it'll leave you jittery and hopped-up on adrenaline, and characters to come back for.
A wilfully strange setting explored through a predictable but enjoyable old school RPG thats been streamlined just enough.
Coffee shop philosophy with a side of comedy banter, plated attractively.
A deckbuilder that will have you doing hit point calculations and liking it.
Slick and generous, Magic: The Gathering Arena is finally the adaptation the CCG originator deserves.