Developer Sunny Syrup Studio had the best of intentions in combining two awesome genres: Capcom-style run-and-gun action and platforming with deckbuilding ala Slay The Spire. In this unfortunate case, ambitions exceed game design and technical know-how.
I can foresee a future LEGO Horizon-themed toyline happening if this game gets loads of traction, but at the very least, this isn't poorly-made license fare. Guerilla and Studio Gobo did good work in making a co-op family game for all, and even moreso fun if you've played the Horizon games and see how they've adapted the serious storyline into a LEGO-fied concept. A fun experiment, in other words.
Dragon Age - The Veilguard is far from being a disaster that many internet haters are claiming it to be. It's a serviceable and high-budget comfort food-level action role-playing game. Though if I'm being fair, that's probably the worst thing a standout trendsetter company like Bioware can commit: something that straddles along the lines of "fine".
This strategy title offers some neat-yet-short challenges, a replayable roguelike structure that lets you mix and match new units as well as tons of unlocks and Metal Slug backstory lore to uncover, as well as features a slew of new mechanics that other future strategy titles should borrow from. [...] Metal Slug Tactics is a strange entry in the series, but a fresh and welcoming one indeed.
While it's not the biggest game changer in the franchise ala Ys VIII, Ys X: Nordics is still a fun and smooth-sailing ride that truly throws you back to the days when Adol had less people to work with in the combat field. Having said that, new character Karja is a worthy addition and a tag-team player to go alongside Adol, and does help form a pretty fun-if-potentially-broken combat system involving tag-team moves that go in sync.
Even with the already saturated sea of JRPGs this year, this Romancing SaGa remake is worthy of your time whether you played the 1993 original to death, or just want to jump into a new style of the genre with fresh eyes and perspectives. Many of the original's core tenets are preserved and made better in this remake, which is the goal of the project really.
Neva is love, Neva is life, and also a fun-if-brief visual splendour to boot.
While the game is not the most in-depth title from a competitive standpoint, Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero is this generation's best Dragon Ball-themed 3D fighter complete with thrills, spills, and fanservice up the wazoo.
With a unique 2D aesthetic, a rockin' old-school soundtrack, and fast-and-furious racing and rally action, Victory Heat Rally revs up just fine on the 3D road in its pixel-on-polygonal livery.
Balatro is a triumph in simple-yet-airtight game design, combining the old-schoolness of poker & card shark mechanics with the new roguelike and deck-building-to-perfection loop that leads to an addictive time.
...[I]f you need slick Sega Saturn-style racing that's just about drifting in style and full of winding turns and loops, you can't go wrong with Parking Garage Rally Circuit. It's not a complicated sim affair, but it isn't meant to be since it's straightforward and focused on what it's delivering, wrapped up in a quaint purposefully old-school 3D wrapping.
The Plucky Squire may not be the most challenging game you'll play. It is, however, the most charming, most beautiful, and most engrossing of these 2D action-adventure titles you'll have the pleasure of experiencing.
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 is the quintessential scifi action game experience you need to tune to if you fancy bloodshed, some co-op and PvP, and an all-round great-to-control 3D beat-em-up with solid gunplay. [...] A god emperor-worthy sequel to a 2011 gem, long story short.
While this Uma Musume spin-off game is fun, it's rather short and simplistic to a fault. It clearly needs more than 4 games to carry the entire package; RM128 isn't exactly cheap for a party game with just a few offerings and a bonus roguelite Vampire Survivor-but-on-track-and-field game. Fans will eat this up like carrots on stick, but this isn't the right gateway to the true Uma Musume experience. It's a serviceable party game with cute pixel graphics at best, and an expensive fan-tailored barebones gaming experience at worse.
Visions of Mana's earnestness and positives outweigh its negatives by a sizeable amount. At the very least, old-school 90s RPG fans should be glad that Square Enix did not forget about this classic series, now with a few more bells and whistles to make it quite a ride.
Gundam Breakers 4 is a return to action-slash-build-a-Gundam/Mobile Suit form after a long hiatus; the less said about New Gundam Breakers, the better. The combat is still fast and fun, with great controls and speedy gameplay. The plethora of GunPla base models and bits means no two Gundams online will be the same, both in aesthetics and practical use. The story mode is a great introduction to the Gundam Breakers process, though its missions could use more variety. But a few dud pieces aren't going to ruin the whole model.
With a bunch of neat levels and charismatic themes, as well as fun boss battles that require you to parry like a champ, right down to the smooth and tight controls, Bakeru is a fun 3D throwback ride for those who yearn for a 2000s-esque style challenge and colourful ride through a fantastical & cheery-looking Japan. Some levels do feel a bit samey and can get pretty easy half the time, but Bakeru doesn't wear out its welcome with padding and will entertain you hours on end with its bright demeanour and tribute to Japan.
While beautiful to look at and immersive to a degree, Nobody Wants To Die is a game that plays itself most of the time while you get your jollies being in a sci-fi noir universe with its own unique storyline and lore. There is some semblance of replayability, but the save options and convenience are eschewed for no reason other than to force you to replay the whole game again.
While simple in design, Cat Quest III offers quite a bit of a challenge for the first few hours until you find a favourite weapon or spell (or two) you can cheese with, like with the Orion Sword and lightning build I made up and hour-and-a-half in. Still, this doesn't discount the fun factor and charm the game embodies. Plus, the added New Game Plus mode, the Infinity Tower challenge, and Mew mode modifiers where you can make the game harder for yourself (like no leveling up or no upgrading equipment) will definitely sate challenge buffs everywhere. Simply put, Cat Quest III offers a lot for both casual and hardcore action RPG fans who want a bit of open-world on an indie game scale, a good chunk of feel-good equipment-based fighting and spellcasting, and a whole lotta cute. Just prepare to read through a barrage of animal puns in the story.
While not wholly a chillax game since there's combat, everything about Dungeons of Hinterburg screams "vacation", albeit with an impending disaster looming as you have to sort that out while you're getting your stamps and dungeon work cleared. While its conflicts are mundane, its puzzles and dungeon-trekking, as well as its social elements, make for a hearty combination to ease the soul, especially with the game's heartfelt message about work-life balance and its statement on commercialization in the tourism industry.