Crash Bandicoot N'Sane Trilogy is a must-have for the Xbox One X. It's a beautifully re-created/remastered trilogy that maintains the wonderful essence, as well as difficulty, that came with the original releases way back in the day. Vicarious Visions did a superb job with this one.
As it stands right now, the Wolfhunter DLC, which is going to be a review in progress to see how it all works out, is action-packed and entertaining. The dungeon I was able to get through with the devs at ZeniMax Online Studios was fun, and it felt like a well thought out idea that was executed beautifully.
Overall, there's not a lot to dislike about Yoku's Island Express. It's deep, it's fun, and while the main character may not be memorable as a Rayman or a Mario, the gameplay is so well-planned that you aren't in need of a strong lead character to make it all work. Villa Gorilla did one helluva job with this release and it's a game that shouldn't be overlooked.
Overall, Dragon Marked for Death isn't a perfect title, but damn it's fun. It has all the right elements of a simple action platformer, but RPG attributes to make the experience deeper and more engaging.
Galak-Z: Variant S is a simple shooter that is fun in short stints. The controls are fun, the level design is outstanding, but the motivating factors of the game, which include upgrades, needs to be improved a little before it becomes great. As it stands right now, it's a good space shooter with some potential for improvement in the future.
Freedom Finger is an edgy side-scroller that has heart. It is led by raw rock music and visual design while toting a typical side-scrolling shooter underneath. It's a good game that will definitely keep you challenged and amused.
Paradise Killer's gameplay design and execution are simple, though sometimes taxing. There is a lot to ingest before getting to the game's conclusion, but the style makes the experience unique and worthwhile, which is a huge plus.
MLB The Show 18 is another notch in the successful belt of the MLB series from San Diego Studio. It has better mechanics, more meaningful modes, a gorgeous presentation style and it just feels like what you would imagine a baseball game should feel like.
Indygo, while certainly nothing groundbreaking with mechanics, is a frightfully accurate portrayal of what happens in the mind of someone suffering from depression. The narrative is clearly more important than the game's mechanics, and that shows at times, but the combination of mechanics, dialogue choice and acting help to push the message about how devastating depression can be for an individual suffering from it.
If you need a challenge that is less forgiving than the Dark Souls' series, then you want Demon's Souls. Bluepoint Games brings the very essence of the original 2009 title with this remastered version, upgrades the experience with PS5 hardware, and makes the game more terrifying.
Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition brings a nice set of content to a two-year old experience, which includes an extended map, a new/awesome action in Armiger Unleashed, new vehicles to work with and a more open world feel to it all. Be forewarned, though, for those experiencing it for the first time you will also get the flaws that still exist from the 2016 release. The new content does help motivate the continuation of the game and does a solid job of engaging the player, far more than the initial release, but it also sprinkles in lingering thoughts of what could have been, if there had been more time and money spent with the game.
Book of Demons is a dungeon-crawler that contains an addictive card game element as the crux of its gameplay design while making the experience as easy as possible for the player to stay focused on creative elements of the game. While it does request you to think strategically about how you approach each dungeon as you explore them, it doesn't throw an overbearing layer on top of its simplistic gameplay design that muddles up the fun it wants you to have as you progress through the game.
While PUBG is struggling against the recent competition of Fortnite and Black Ops 4's Blackout, it still offers up a different challenge on a huge map that relies more on simple gameplay mechanics than gimmicks (no one needs to dance that much). While the latter Battle Royale games are certainly more improved and up to date when compared to PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, PUBG is still a solid Battle Royale experience on the PlayStation 4 with room to grow, especially graphically.
Apex Legends is one of the more entertaining, beautifully balanced, and gorgeous games in the Battle Royale genre. The fact that it is free is delightful, and a good move by Respawn Entertainment. I hope they continue this trend with future updates. I may yet stay in this genre for a while because of this game.
The simplicity of Knights and Bikes lies within its need to revisit your childhood and remind you how much fun life can be, even when the storms are intense. It brings a great narrative to the table, throws some fun puzzles in the mix while delivering beautifully playful visuals that request you go on an adventure with a good friend. The game's intentions of stupid fun might outweigh its execution, but it succeeds in capturing the imagination and delivering a fun experience that doesn't take itself too seriously.
Rocket Arena is a very young battle arena shooter. It is off to a decent start, though the pain points of the game are blatantly obvious. Its intentions are to capture that Fortnite crowd with its personality but definitely falls short with its delivery in certain gameplay areas. There is hope for this game and I can see it succeeding with updates and expansions, but right now it's a tough sell when compared to its competition.
Nepenthe is a solid indie game. It's a fun, complicated RPG that has brilliant moments backed up by unique art and music presentation. It does have some bugs to fix, but nothing yet that isn't manageable or gameplay disruptive.
Overall, you get a bigger adventure with Shadow of the Tomb Raider, as well as a bigger world to explore. To cap it all off, the story does the character justice by pushing Croft towards a more mature and badass persona through her obvious and logical flaws. It hits all the right notes and tries new things to give the series a different direction. In the end, it's an impressive upgrade from the last game.
Mothergunship is a solid title that hangs its hat on weapon customization, while sacrificing some gameplay. It's definitely worth a go, even if only to show the insane weapon designs one can concoct.
All of the gameplay design choices made by First Contact Entertainment seem to be more on the good side of the scale rather than the bad. The menus could use some improvement and simplification, and maybe the eventual addition of a campaign, but nothing that can't be corrected in post. What you get with the design is good controls, lots of room for error during the game, intense gameplay with a smooth vantage point, and maps to get lost in when you want to get lost in them. The loadouts, the options of how to conquer your enemy will be the driving point to the gameplay. That's never a bad thing when those options are in the positive.