Hades is jam-packed with action, has a cool take on Greek mythology, and features a ton of replayability. I urge you not to sleep on this escapade; it's a helluva good time.
The Mafia remake makes the original 2002 title obsolete by improving and upgrading everything, which is the whole point. Archaic gameplay, tropes, and controls are refurbished to make the new game and its cast all the better while preserving the core of Tommy’s rise and subsequent fall in the game’s thrilling narrative.
As entertaining timesinks go, Genshin Impact has it made. The game has a ton of potential to grow to become stellar and eye-opening; perhaps even better than its aesthetic sources of inspiration and contemporaries. As of now though, it's settling just fine with a bronze medal as online RPG comfort food.
Crash Bandicoot 4 is a true return to form. It's essentially the modern version of a 90s 3D platforming genre that still retains its challenge & freshness.
I look forward to seeing more great things from Glass Heart Games, because Vigil: The Longest Night is a lovely first effort from the studio.
Pumpkin Jack is a good first effort from a one-man game-designing army. It’s fun for its short length, it offers a bit of variety with its puzzles and challenges, and the platforming & design is solid.
And that's all that matters in Foregone: the core loop gameplay. It's just fun. Sure, it needs a bit more meat with its narrative, a slightly higher difficulty curve, and a bit more weapon variation, but the overall package is slick and entertaining.
If you want a surprise entry in the action genre, look no further than the fast and frenetic Ghostrunner. Granted, its difficulty curve will frustrate you not unlike a Souls-like game, but once you get to the rhythm and groove of it, you'll ace it and aim for a better run.
You haven’t experienced a story of this magnitude and quality not just in a video game, but in the sci-fi genre as a whole. 13 Sentinels, and Vanillaware as a whole, are video game cultural treasures, no buts about it.
Even if you're burned out by simulations like Project CARS 3 (a pretty inferior sequel, to be frank), you should give DIRT 5 a chance if you aim for a simple arcade racing game with great-looking frills, noteworthy challenges, and a straightforward path.
Xuan-Yuan Sword VII has promise, but it fails in delivering a consistent and manageable experience. In meshing hack and slash games like Dark Souls, Bayonetta, and any mid-2000 mid-card action game out there, this action RPG feels like a hybrid that doesn’t know what to excel & focus on.
[The Pathless'] presentation, its challenges and puzzles, and its unique one-two archer-and-falcon punch are noteworthy enough to pick it up as either a PC indie darling or a lovely launch title for your newly-acquired PS5. In other words, take flight.
Just like past games, Yakuza: Like A Dragon still retains the magic of balancing the serious and the absurd side-by-side with deft precision and skill. You won't regret this trip down Isezaki Ijincho and getting enamoured by its 40-hours plus journey.
Immortals: Fenyx Rising is not going to win any awards for originality. But it is charming most of the time, features a lush Greek god island to explore that’s filled with secrets and discoverables, and contains a ton of brain-teasers mixed in with some light-yet-hearty combat.
Despite its outerworldly setting, Haven’s message & writing highlights the pros and cons of a relationship that many couples, and even ex-couples, can relate to. Except for maybe the bit where you feed a marble cake to attract a giant alien manta ray to serve as your makeshift taxi cab.
Still, Drawn To Life; Two Realms balances its cutesy art style with its surprisingly emotional storyline that serves as a bookend for fans, while also ramping up the hardcore difficulty one would expect of a 2D platformer with nerve-wracking brain teasers.
Cyberpunk 2077 is definitely a massive CRPG undertaking. If it weren’t for the glitches and bugs in the way, I’d say CD Projekt has a helluva masterpiece in its hands.
[Umurangi Generation's] unfolding story, unnerving setting and atmosphere, hip soundtrack, and simple breezy gameplay are enough to make this an adventure that stands out amidst its indie peers.
Ocean’s Heart is a well-crafted love letter to the 2D Legend of Zelda games on the NES and SNES featuring a charming setting, a short-but-sweet play length, and fun gameplay. I do wish the bosses were actually challenging and mentally stimulating, but the overall journey is more eventful than the destination.
Yacht Club and Mechanical Head have clearly made a title for acquired tastes, specifically the masochistic kind, but they at least had the decency to be generous with its continue system and new-age game design nuances like refillable energy for your skills.