While Peril on Gorgon isn’t as revelatory & as grand as Obsidian’s Fallout: New Vegas DLC offerings it's still pretty darn good. With just about 6 hours or so worth of quests and stories to unravel and be entertained by, alongside welcome additions to stats and arsenals, this should hopefully inspire the devs to go for broke.
For the rest of you looking for a challenging 2020 game right off the bat and don’t mind investing 20 to 30 hours getting good, dig into BPM: Bullets Per Minute. You won’t regret it.
The DLC's expansion on Borderlands' lore and storytelling is arguably noteworthy and shouldn't be dismissed. I'd say it's a chief reason to fork over money for this new addition.
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.
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.
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.
[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.
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.
[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.
I honestly want to see more Bloober Team horror games of this nature, because it seems this big ambitious project is the best direction to go. In short, The Medium is a great start to bigger and better things.
Despite having pretty big shoes to fill, Ys IX is a standout action RPG title with a decent plot and features top-tier gameplay that's challenging and addictive. Sometimes, that's more than enough when you're an RPG maker who has to be creative with a budget.
If you are one of those RPG enthusiasts who want another improved version of Final Fantasy V and Final Fantasy Tactics' Job system to mess around with in 2021, right down to its archaic trappings, Bravely Default 2's got you sorted.
For you retro gamers and 2D shmup fans longing for an arcade challenge, you should goose-step up to the challenge.
Eldest Souls, while derivatively named, is a ball of a time that’s catered specifically towards hardcore action game fans who want strict controls and an actual challenge.
Any game that tosses in a lovely homage to 90s wrestling via its medieval arena combat portions is at least worth your good attention.
Flynn: Son of Crimson might fly under the radar for most gamers, but this is one 2D action platforming indie title you should not miss out on.
As a fan of old-school platformers of the PS2 and Gamecube era, I'm down for Ember Labs' first-ever game offering. It could have ended up being an overproduced and bogged-down mess, but Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a wondrous 10-hour experience from start to finish.