While the FarCry formula is certainly evident in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, the game does just enough to make it stand out from similar titles that simply tick off boxes in the open-world formula. The world is beautiful and interesting enough to explore, and Ubisoft and Massive Entertainment have done well to translate this IP into a worthwhile title for some players, especially fans of the franchise.
Saying it again, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has good bones but is lacking some meat in important areas that may make or break it. With only three maps to play at launch, players looking for more will surely feel disappointed. Even then, there’s fun to be had in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, but it is quite hard to recommend it at launch when things are still a bit bare bones, so to speak. Fans of the genre may want to check it out due to its fantastic recreation of the film, but some caution regarding the breadth of content is advised.
Park Beyond is an interesting time with an interesting concept. Impossification is a great feature, allowing players to let their imagination run wild, all while meeting the checks and balances of a sim game. Sadly, the game is marred by bugs and crashes that have happened more times than I normally forgive titles for. Add a UI that feels unfinished and unpolished, and the experience really sours the more you play. Despite using a powerful rig, Park Beyond still has some hitches, but it's great that the developers are hard at work on fixes.
Overall, LEGO 2K Drive is a surprisingly competent racer that I totally did not expect, and while it is mostly aimed at a younger target audience, more experienced players might be pleasantly surprised at what LEGO 2K Drive has to offer. There are a lot of side activities and collectibles to be had in the game, and when not exploring, players can take part in the campaign mode to race it up against other aspiring champs. There’s also a local and online co-op to take on other racers across the world. Sadly, the aggressive monetization really ruins a lot of the fun in the game. There’s always a choice not to use this avenue, but between the low payouts per race, the long grind, and the expensive pricing, the push to spend more Brickbux is as powerful as ever.
Redfall is a highly anticipated title for Xbox fans, and while it may not hit the extreme highs that may have been expected of it, the game does provide some semblance of decent gameplay with fast-paced combat and some vampire-slaying action. Despite that, performance problems plague the PC version of the game, with wildly inconsistent frame rates even when nothing is happening on screen. Redfall isn't releasing with a 60 fps option on the Xbox Series X as announced by the studio, and seeing how the game is performing on the PC, the game clearly needed more time to get optimization in and iron out kinks, which could lead players to wait before trying it out.
Horizon Call of the Mountain sets out to do something and does it well. It’s a game that showcases the capabilities of the PS VR2 to great effect, possibly giving players a reason to take a chance on the new hardware. To call it a climbing simulator could be a fair assessment, but it’s hard to deny the game for what it really is, which is a spectacular showcase of the new hardware from Sony. Is it the killer app for the PS VR2? Arguably, I’d say it isn’t, but I cannot deny how Horizon Call of the Mountain has made me look forward to what’s next on the VR front.
Gotham Knights does a lot of things right but keeps flying low and fails to push past the point of just good to great. Crime fighting is best done with another Knight by your side, and the untethered nature of its co-op play feels great until you experience the massive performance drops. Players will need to look past a number of things before considering the game, which could be a tough ask, especially with other big-ticket titles launching within its release window. It’s a shame, because Gotham Knights has some interesting ideas that simply suffer from average implementation. A lot of things in the game feels ok but not great, but fans of the Bat-universe can find quite a decent adventure that can easily entertain.
NBA 2K23 is by no means a bad game. Year after year, the team has been adding tweaks and making changes to the formula that further solidify it as the best basketball game out there. The addition of the Jordan Challenge is a cherry on top of the cake that makes this content-complete package truly delectable. Once a highlight, it feels like MyCAREER has been relegated to the background in NBA 2K23. The lack of an engaging story is sorely felt, and this year, more than ever, the decision boils down to what mode you actually enjoy playing the most. Overall, NBA 2K23 feels like the most realistic it’s ever been, and that may be a good or bad thing depending on who you ask. While the gameplay remains fun and engaging, some parts of the whole feel like they have regressed in favor of others. There’s a definite give-and-take here that’s more pronounced than in previous years, and players will just have to pick their poison.
F1 22 is in a bit of a strange situation because while it doesn’t add drastic changes or updates to the game, it still is the best F1 game out there that’s as easily accessible to newcomers as well as F1-heads looking for a deep experience. One thing it adds is F1 Life, a lackluster experience when compared to Braking Point, which I would expect to make a return next year. Other than this, F1 22 will feel overly similar to last year, especially for casual players that won’t pay too much attention to the finer details and will simply enjoy the game for what it is – a fun and exciting racing experience. F1 22 is far from a bad game, but its current offering this year features a laundry list of changes that don’t do too much to change the overall experience unless you know what to look for. Some will like the consistency while others will rue the lack of updates, and it will really depend on how much these mean to you when thinking of that eventual purchase.
MLB The Show 22 is the latest installment in the long-running series and, like most annual sports games, introduces some new features that make it an arguably better product than last year. One of my gripes from last year was that MLB The Show 21 didn't really take advantage of the more powerful hardware of the PS5 and Xbox Series and it's mostly the same complaint I have now. Maybe next year? Similar to the likes of NBA 2K, many will most likely flock to its campaign mode called Road to the Show, and while it is a competent mode, there's very little difference from last year's outing, which is getting rather old at this point. Other features like Diamond Dynasty and March to October make a return, rounding up a full-featured installment.
Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers Edition is quite the curious case. On one hand, the game is an absolute classic that everyone needs to experience, and this release just does that. By releasing on more modern platforms, especially on the Switch (which is probably the best way to play this game), a brand new audience can come to realize the greatness of the RPGs of old wrapped in a shiny new package. On the other hand, the remaster isn't something you'd expect for a game of this stature. Maybe it would have been wrong to expect more, but I certainly expected more from it and was disappointed, mainly because of the performance issues, something that is inexcusable given the technology we have currently. Some may overlook this, but it doesn't change the fact that it exists.
Overall, Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach is a solid entry in the long-running series that has garnered a cult following throughout the years. It is the best-looking game in the series and really excels at creating a tension-filled atmosphere that will keep you on your toes. Despite its many bugs and glitches, the core gameplay remains enjoyable as long as you can learn to put up with some of its questionable design decisions that can pile up to be a source of frustration while playing the game.
Chocobo GP is a serviceable racer that will, unfortunately, be compared to Mario Kart until the end of time, as with any other kart racer. That's not to say that the game is bad, and it isn't, by a longshot. Despite several similar features, the game has enough spin to it to give it its own identity. In particular, the Magicite system is surprisingly good, offering a layer of strategy on top of the chaos that ensues during a race.
Battlefield 2042 feels like a game that could have used another delay to position itself as something ready for the spotlight. Instead, it released with a number of annoying bugs that compounded into problems that led the community to really rail on the game. Despite these bugs being something that can be fixed by a number of patches, Battlefield 2042 really needed to make a strong first impression seeing the tight Q4 FPS landscape.
Call of Duty: Vanguard, while another solid offering, doesn’t do enough to stand out and make it another must-buy compared to previous years. This has become increasingly important because of the fact that there are a couple of huge FPS games that will be releasing in the next few weeks that will surely give players something to think about. Call of Duty: Vanguard sticking to a safe outing might have been to its detriment for this year, just when it needed to shine the most.
Just Dance 2022 is the latest entry in the long-running series from Ubisoft. Boasting a selection of tracks that will cater to a wide variety of musical preferences, there’s much to love about the game despite the lack of innovation from year to year.
Rising Hell is a great entry by Tahoe Games, offering a unique take on the genre. The game is simple enough to understand and pick up and play by even newcomers but offers just enough challenge to cater to fans of the genre. While the lack of depth, especially with builds that directly affect replayability, is disappointing, this is overshadowed because of the rather small but very talented dev team.
Overall, while Wonder Boy Asha in Monster World modernizes the original, it could have done so with some much-needed updates. An auto-save function would have been fantastic, as the thought or manual saving sometimes just passes you by as you play, resulting in lost progress if you’re not mindful enough. Some of the levels, particularly the Ice Pyramid and the Sky Castle are very tedious, with some very precision-based platforming that can sometimes be very unforgiving especially for players just looking for a fun time. If you’re a gamer that grew up with the likes of The Lion King, then you would know what to expect here.
An utterly enjoyable shooter that shines the brightest with its co-op mechanics, Helldivers 2 has crushed all initial apprehensions about its live service and procedurally generated nature and delivered a dose of lovable democracy. The progression systems look to be on track to keep players invested for the foreseeable future, and the fun just doesn’t seem to want to stop anytime soon. Even with the friendly fire and accidents that arise from having others around you, the very nature of Helldivers 2 makes it more of a positive than a negative, and that is no mean feat. Super Earth requires the effort of every person to liberate the galaxy, and it is a no-brainer to enlist as soon as you can.
A poignant story that will matter more to longtime fans but is otherwise still accessible to newcomers, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth delivers a robust adventure that takes advantage of its turn-based system to make combat even more enjoyable, aided by an expanded job system that continues to impress. With more cohesive writing and storytelling, the cast of familiar and new faces come together for an engaging tale that strikes a great balance between the absurd and the serious, constantly driving players along for its main storyline and providing a plethora of distractions along the way to entertain. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is undoubtedly the best work RGG Studios have put out in recent times, and the team will have a hard task ahead of them if they hope to surpass the greatness that is now available for everyone to enjoy.