Kingdom Rush Origins from Ironhide Game Studio is a step up with creativity, enemy, and hero design/execution, and with how clever the series’ maps can get. Unfortunately, the difficulty has also stepped up and can create a frustrating time that may hurt the positive parts of this latest Kingdom Rush game.
After Us from developer Piccolo is an interesting title. It tries to create a Journey-like inspiring adventure through gigantic worlds and simplistic controls. Most of what it does works well, especially with its narrative, though the mechanics from its gameplay design sometimes fight against story progression and player engagement. The game can create some frustration with the camera and controls but wins more than it loses.
If you come in expecting LEGO 2K Driver to fit firmly with previously released LEGO games, then you’re in for a world of disappointment. This is a game of its own based purely on racing and open-world exploration. While not all of it works completely, it does have enough charm and creativity to push it through as a game worth playing.
To say that Redfall needs major work to fix some balancing issues would be a bit of an understatement. For a game that had so much hype during its development and was supposed to be the first big game of 2023 for the Xbox family that wasn’t called Halo or Forza, it has fallen short in its delivery. There are quite a few issues with Redfall, lots of unbalance in gameplay, and plenty to correct before it can be considered a permanent and worthwhile IP.
Ash of Gods: The Way from developer AurumDust sets a new standard with how deck-building games should be made. It has the core structure that makes the deck-building fun and familiar, while also adding a thoughtful narrative and a variety of gameplay structures to keep the game engaging and entertaining.
Smile for Me from developer LimboLane is an unsettling adventure that puts you to the test with its puzzles. The point-and-click backbone will keep the difficulty coming, but the reward for your patience and perseverance will be worth the cognitive trouble you endure.
Strayed Lights is a challenge with enemies and with controls. Depending on what type of gamer you might be, this could be a positive or a negative. For me, it was small doses of progression and motivation to see the story progress that kept me playing.
Ghostwire: Tokyo is a good game, if only for how thick and unnerving the story and world might be. While the gameplay does come up a bit empty, the story helps to pick up the slack and make the adventure worthwhile.
While San Diego Studio doesn’t take a huge leap with MLB The Show 23 compared to last year’s game, it’s still entertaining and the best baseball game on the planet. The addition of The Negro Leagues mode makes for a deeper and more enriching experience.
Road 96: Mile 0 is a smaller, different experience than Road 96. While the game’s story helps fill in some blanks and provide some context for Zoe’s journey in the first game, the gameplay style mash-up between branching narrative and linear/on-rails gameplay leaves the experience lacking just a bit.
Kingdom Rush: Frontiers is a good follow-up to the original game. It’s far more creative with enemies and protagonist characters, but also far more difficult. Regardless, the experience is more fun than not.
Before Your Eyes is a devastating journey in VR that you won’t soon forget. While the journey itself doesn’t last that long, the story is long enough to leave an imprint on the gamer for years to come. It has a very Grave of the Fireflies vibe to it, so bring the tissues.
Storyteller from developer Daniel Benmergui is yet another feather in the cap of Annapurna Interactive. It’s a cleverly designed puzzle game that does a superb job of pushing the importance of visual storytelling as it relates to a narrative. While its longevity might be in question, the journey through the game is good enough to forgive that is even an issue.
Destiny 2: Lightfall is disjointed in story, but pulls through with its gameplay. Something has to give with the former, as the story needs to be memorable and engaging, and this expansion simply didn’t get there in either category.
Ragnarock is a wonderful rhythm game from WanadevStudio that does enough to separate it from its Beat Saber brethren. The Viking backdrop and drum-beating fun make it unique in its music-driven rhythm gameplay, as does the variety of music included. The difficulty jumps from easy to hard is a steep climb that may not be everyone’s cup of tea.
After the Fall from Vertigo Games is a wonderful jumpstart to the PSVR 2 starting line-up. It has some fun zombie shooting times, great upgrades, and reasons to revisit the game, but falls short in substance in some areas. It is worth your time if you’re looking for a good VR experience.
Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo is a more complicated version of Phoenix Wright. It contains some tricky puzzles to overcome while being driven by a thick amount of Japanese folklore, as well as a touch of horror. It can be frustrating, if not overwhelming at times, but its take on the Phoenix Wright gameplay logic puzzle structure makes for a fun and unique experience.
Resident Evil 4 was a marvel when it was released back in 2005 and Resident Evil 4 Remake follows the same path. It’s pure perfection from beginning to end and groundbreaking with its backend improvements and details. Capcom has hit another home run with this one.
Spongebob Squarepants: Krusty Cook-Off – Extra Krusty Edition is a fun game that is built on a casual gaming backbone and runs well on the Nintendo Switch. While it will never reach the impressive gameplay heights of the Overcooked series, Spongebob Squarepants: Krusty Cook-Off – Extra Krusty Edition delivers fun levels, good controls, and enough reason to return to it over and over again.
Catan: Console Edition has some design issues but can be manageable when desperately looking for a CATAN fix on current generation consoles. It certainly needs some work in its default setup, speed options, and dice-rolling mechanics, but for the most part, it still does the trick.