Deathloop takes elements from games like Bioshock and Dishonored, combining them with a Groundhogs Day like timeloop to create the coolest, most stylish, and best game of the year.
MLB The Show 23 is a great step forward for the series, thanks in large part to its brilliant new Negro Leagues mode.
NieR: Automata The End of YoRHa Edition is a great port, bringing a complete version of NieR: Automata to the Nintendo Switch. Its story is as engaging as ever, and the diverse gameplay continues to wow audiences. This is an excellent way to experience a classic game.
Chivalry 2's ability to convert chaos into exuberance gifts players with an experience that brilliantly hones in on one of the greatest aspects of gaming: fun.
Loopmancer is like a great cover of a classic song, in 2D action-platformer roguelite form. It may not be very creative, but it's excellent and highly replayable nonetheless.
Endless Dungeon is simultaneously a great roguelite, a great twin-stick shooter, and a great tower defense game.
The Finals is a fresh and exciting take on team based PVP shooters, featuring some of the best environmental destruction in any FPS.
MLB The Show 24 continues to push the genre forward – not every choice is a homerun, but it has enough hits for another all-star appearance.
Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 delivers one of the best shooters of the year, with intense sniping, skillfully crafted progression, and engaging levels
Dying Light 2 does so much so well. You never know what you are going to get when you venture out into Villedor.
Gotham Knights takes up the mantle of the Batman series and ably carves out an identity of its own, rather than recreating that of its predecessors.
God of War: Ragnarok is a strong follow-up to a modern masterpiece, but does it sacrifice depth for breadth?
Horizon Call of the Mountain is Sony's flagship game for PSVR 2. It's an impressive technical showcase, but is it the game that makes VR a must-have?
The Madden NFL series has long had a solid gameplay foundation, maintained by small improvements year over year. Madden NFL 23 is the first iteration in a long time that rebuilds that foundation, and that’s where this year's greatest success lies. Some slippery collisions aside, the more physics-based action is a good change, and the control over ball placement from Skill-Based passing is a welcome addition. This comes at the cost of only minor updates to the core gameplay modes, but it was ultimately the right call to make, and Madden is a better game for it.
MLB The Show 22 is mostly a retread of an already great game, but more bugs than usual and the not quite ready for primetime co-op mode are signs this series may be losing some velocity.
Minecraft Legends is an engaging strategy game that capably combines the established Minecraft world with a streamlined RTS structure.
RoboCop: Rogue City is a pitch-perfect throwback to the action movies of the ‘80s. It’s over-the-top violence with charm, largely well put together but rough on the edges. Most importantly, it's a fun way to spend time in a beloved fictional universe that doesn’t overstay its welcome. Blasting at goons as an unstoppable walking machine remains as extremely entertaining as it seemed on the big screen, thanks in part to an impressive commitment to capturing the look and feel of the original film. Mixing in elements like routine police work and side quests does a great job changing the pace, too. Even if it’s not the best example of visual fidelity, and prone to some bugs along the way, that love of RoboCop shines through. This is a solid B movie of a video game, which is exactly what the source material demands.
Mario Party Superstars is a solid, if unambitious, compilation of the best the series has to offer.
Digimon Survive is a good — and surprisingly dark — visual novel, with a mediocre turn-based battle system.
Disjunction is a fun stealth action game with great art and music, but there aren't enough interesting elements to keep the gameplay from eventually growing stale.