Jesse Norris's Reviews
Roboquest is a ton of fun, though it never feels great on a controller. It does feel good enough to recommend on Xbox, though. The devs get what it takes to make a solid run-based title, utilizing their years in early-access to craft another title worth checking out on Game Pass.
The Invincible is a great game, full of wonderful storytelling and choices that feel impactful. The narrative suffers a bit near the end, but it’s an easy game to recommend to any genre fan. The gameplay is enjoyable, Regis III and everything on it is gorgeously realized, and it is a dream prequel to an excellent book.
Robocop: Rogue City is a 7, but it’s a really fun 7. It knows what it is, and it sticks to that no matter what. The writing isn’t the best, and some of the characters look straight out of a $3 steam simulator title. Still I had a ton of fun beating this one over the course of a day and a half so if you love the series it’s well worth checking out.
UFC 5 is fun to play, looks great, has a ton of fighters, though the career mode is a glorified tutorial. If you love the sport this seems like the best one yet, and should be well worth checking out.
Alan Wake 2 is a masterpiece and you should play it, now.
Hellboy Web of Wyrd has good ideas and flawed execution. It’s not a looker, becomes repetitive to play after 15 minutes, and has one of the least satisfying rogue-like setups I can remember. If you love the character the story is interesting, but slogging through the title to see it is a tough thing to recommend.
Lords of the Fallen is a stunningly good game. Following a path set for it by Dark Souls 3 it nails every major part of what makes From’s games so damned good. Stunning visually, the art style and music are some of my favorites. While the very end does get too “big” for its gameplay this one is an easy recommendation to both the most hardcore Souls lovers and those who feel intimidated. Seamless co-op takes what is a great game and makes it a special one.
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.