Jesse Norris's Reviews
NHL 24 is a solid improvement on-ice over last year’s title, with the exhaustion engine adding technical depth that the series has lacked. Outside of that, some minor presentation and control improvements are countered by mostly the same overall package of modes. If you love the NHL then this is the best playing game in the series, but if it’s $70 worth or better over last year’s is tough to say.
Assassin’s Creed: Mirage is a solid entry in the release-filled series. Featuring a far shorter campaign than previous titles it sacrifices “value in hours” for “valuable hours”. Mirage is a tight package that any Assassin’s Creed fan, new or old, will enjoy.
At launch, I cannot recommend The Lamplighters League on Xbox. It runs terribly, while looking ugly, and is a broken and buggy mess. Once this game is patched up and fixed though, it’s a gem. Great gameplay, a deep meta-game, intriguing story, and one of the best videogame soundtracks I’ve ever heard will be there waiting for you (and hopefully still in Game Pass).
Phantom Liberty caps off a miraculous comeback for Cyberpunk
Solar Ash is short, sweet, and a little too repetitive. The gameplay is a ton of fun the first hour or two. By the end things were carried by the gorgeous visuals, excellent music, and heartbreaking story. This one should be a no brainer to at least check out through Game Pass
Lies of P is an incredible game, and the best Souls-like I have ever played that wasn’t made by From Software. It stands to toe-to-toe with Dark Souls III, one of my favorite games of all time. They have figured out exactly what makes this genre so damned good. Thrilling combat, top-notch level design, gorgeous scenery, incredible music and more make this one a no-brainer to try out Day One on Game Pass.
Demolish & Build fails at being an enjoyable game in every single way.
Starfield is a new beginning. Not only for Bethesda but for Xbox as a whole. With excellent writing, stunning graphics, and thrilling gameplay it makes the galaxy yours to explore, shape, and live in. It is a wonderous tapestry to experience your story in a way that only the best have done before.
An odd return to what has been a mostly mediocre series. It fixes multiple issues, mainly control-wise from the past titles, without adding much else. It isn’t great to look at, and while it can be fun to play its poor balance as you progress kills any joy to be found after not too long.
The game is fantastic in every way. Excellent gameplay, nice graphics, great sound, and a ton of variety in its objectives mean this absolute gem is one you should look into no matter when you’re reading this review.
Atlas Fallen is close to being damned good. It is let down by a lack of variety in enemy encounters, poor side quests, and dreadful writing. Still, the combat quickly becomes damned fun and with the option of co-op, it’s well worth checking out if you want some God of Crackdown-style action platforming adventures.
Atomic Heart is a good game, but this DLC is an unsatisfying follow-up to that story. It removes the surprising depth of both the characters and gameplay and replaces it with a linear mess that rarely resembles the far superior original title.
Remnant II tickles greatness but falls short due to a few design choices. It is gorgeous, plays incredibly well, and should be one of the year’s best releases. I’m not sure if my issues with the game can be easily patched out, but I hope the devs at Gunfire Games give this one the same love the first game received over time.
Maquette is a short, impactful experience. Through clever use of its puzzle mechanics, it forces you to think in ways only the best of the genre tend to do. While the story and writing aren’t as good as the other parts of the title it is still an easy recommendation for anyone to check out for a night or two through Game Pass.
Exoprimal is a solid foundation. What is here now will be fun for a month or two, and Capcom will need to show that they can back up what sounds like a solid live service plan. It is available for $60 or on Game Pass for both console and PC. Solo or with friends it is a hell of a lot of fun, and an easy recommendation to at least give it a try.
Perhaps the most important game ever gets potentially perfect DLC?!?!
AEW: Fight Forever rekindles the flame of the classic N64 wrestling titles. Featuring a fantastic mix of nostalgia and new it is only let down on occasion by budget and scope constraints. I hope this is the start of a new, long-running series that takes this excellent foundation and adds more variety on top of it for years to come.
A well-made, beautiful action focused Metroidvania. The combat starts off slow but when it clicks it is excellent. The traversal and platforming are top-notch, and even though I’m not too much of a furry I grew to enjoy the characters and story quickly.
Dr. Fetus’ Mean Meat Machine is an occasionally brilliant match 4 puzzler. It has great ideas mixed with middling execution. I can’t say I “enjoyed” my time playing it, but I appreciated the looks and sounds when I was sane enough to pay attention to them.
a solid compilation of two decent horror titles. It is a massive graphical upgrade that uses a new narrative to tie them together in a satisfying way. Releasing at $30 MSRP if you haven’t played the games before and love to get creeped out then this one is well worth checking out.