There’s probably going to be weeks, if not months, of fans running numbers, dissecting builds and figuring out the best way to succeed, and that will be exciting to unpack…once it’s done. In the meantime, dedicated players who really enjoy SRPG combat with a massive dose of oddball aesthetic will find something truly unique and engaging with Mewgenics. It’s got plenty to experience, so don’t dismiss it right away. But please note that it is a learning process, and, if you don’t get it immediately, it might take all nine of your lives.
Having said that, my quiet, peaceful experience with Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 was perfect for these cold winter days. I don’t want to venture outside and go do something active and frostbitten. I want to hunker down with a flagon of mead (Mellow Yellow) and get my exercise by turning pages and reading about busting heads. I don’t have to worry about losing my dice underneath the kotatsu, I can just push a button and then keep pushing it if I don’t like the numbers. I’m my own dungeon master, and this is a fantastic, tight and wonderfully replayable solo adventure.
I’m late to the party with Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass. I never experienced it on PC, and this console enhanced version might be wasted on me because I don’t know how much was added. But, like last year’s OFF, bringing a story like this to the wider audience is beyond my wildest dreams and expectations. An early contender for my favorite experience of 2026, this has done the impossible. It’s a real Western delivery of what Mother is supposed to feel like, and it does it with the dedication and love that a creator can deliver.
Lovish has some tight, punishing and unrelenting gameplay firmly packed into an aesthetically pleasing and insane narrative that never tries to justify itself beyond “why not?” The game has as much replay value as you want to put into it, and I personally found it to be a delight and a treasure.
That’s the core success of Look Mum No Computer. It’s got a story to tell through sound and concept, and it does it well and succinctly. I love twinsticks, and this one scratched an itch in due time without dragging it out. As someone who grew up messing around with FruityLoops, this kind of crunchy soundtrack that also has modular aspects was a treat, and discovering a musician, especially one so passionate about his craft, was a delight.
The Perfect Pencil, ironically, is not perfect in the gameplay or pacing, but it does stand out in concept and delivery. While some moments are a trifle ham fisted, it nonetheless promises and delivers a unique metroidvania that keeps you moving, keeps you exploring and does a lot for fans of the genre wanting to try things from another angle. I’m not sure if I’m the ideal audience, but I listened, and I think I was able to hear John clearly. I hope others can, too.
Adults who enjoyed Earnest Evans as kids will be disappointed to find out how truly janky it was, and those intrigued by the companion titles will be let down. It’s a coffee table book where anyone reading it will immediately set it back down. The digital edition holds curiosity and little else. Pick up a copy if you must, especially for preservation’s sake, but don’t expect this to do anything but collect dust.
Simulation games nowadays may be incredibly granular and pithy, but the end results tend to be very satisfying for people locked into the builds of their characters, cities or vehicles. You develop something of which you can be proud. Milano’s Odd Job Collection is eight mini games slapped together with a deeply unhappy backstory that gives nothing to the players at the end of the day, and serves no purpose in helping you develop a connection with anyone in the story.
It feels so empty at times, grinding for wild Pokémon is still a sometimes boring chore, and there are exceedingly long periods of time where you’re just fighting and you don’t really have a choice but to keep going back, night after night, to brawl with strangers. When you limit the game to a single city, you want the whole thing to feel vibrant and charged, like if Blade Runner let you hunt Replicants with an Arcanine. Instead, it’s just another Pokémon game. It moved some things forward in terms of fashion and some animation, but it’s a snail’s pace of progress for one of the wealthiest IPs out there today.
Saborus is certainly memorable, but so is the first time I found a bone in a chicken nugget. It has potential, but you can’t explore it on the Switch, and the tonal shift and odd choices might take away from the overall effect. Truth be told, if it does help someone better understand animal rights and start the steps towards either reforming the industry or at least making more informed choices, then I’d chalk it up as a win. But please keep in mind: this “horror” title is only scary when you remember the true monster is mankind! Or something like that.
A game that makes me feel like I’m getting better, while telling a story about a human aspect, and delivering whimsy, humor and prestige. I couldn’t have been happier, and now I’m hoping for a console port so I can play this on my Switch again next year.
As I Began to Dream is a lovely, if bittersweet, experience that delivers in the storytelling department, but fumbles a bit in the gameplay execution.
You will get frustrated. You will grind your teeth. You will feel your hands shake and that one muscle in your neck will get sore from being tense. But you will persevere, and Bittersweet Birthday will reward you as a result. If you cannot take the stress of it all, trade off with someone who doesn’t mind the fury and take over the controller when you’re given the chance to chat, play mini games, and collect gatchas, because that’s all lovely and good. But when the soundtrack shifts and menace is on the horizon, it’s time to beat your plowshare back into a sword.
This is Onion Games’ opus, and I hope they’re proud of what they’ve accomplished. On nights of sonder and existential loneliness, remember that we have all been, at one time or another, stray children. I hope it comforts you.
Million Depth has such a compelling throughline that I’m doing my damnedest not to ruin for newcomers, and the approach is unique, engaging and successful. Minecraft fans will take to the weapon upgrade faster than I did, and those of you who want to simply do the “story” mode will find incredible satisfaction in spite of the watered down difficulty. It’s brilliantly unique and reminds me that the worst damages wrought by humanity often are tinged with good intentions and the erroneous beliefs of righteousness. If you’re prepared to face the pain of it all, hold your oxygen tank close and dive in. There’s so many layers to peel back to reach the truth.
You can slap a fresh coat of makeup and a beautiful dress on a reanimated corpse, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a staggering, hungry mess. Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted ends up doing meta commentary on itself. The franchise has been raised from the dead, not with something new but with a necromantic amalgamation of what it was, what it could be and what it ultimately is. If you have no other way to play Plants vs. Zombies, you can mostly enjoy it on the Switch, and at least the asking price isn’t too strong. But don’t reward mediocrity.
Brief and memorable, Cling to Blindness builds tension and horror without relying on cheap tricks and does well to craft a story and experience that sticks with you until the very end.
Overall, Jackbox Party Pack 11 is a fantastic iteration and adds more to the series than not. While some of the titles may be lost over time, there’s still a lot of joy to be had here and it’s a necessary addition to any Jackbox enthusiast. Draw, accuse and doom your friends, and then have a nice screaming sesh in between answering adventurous trivia. This pack goes all the way to eleven!
MotionRec is an absolute delight that both crafts an incredible experience while keeping players happy with actual gameplay. It kept me coming back again and again, and, in spite of some very difficult Notes to find, I was enthralled from start to finish.
Simon the Sorcerer Origins is such a brilliant revival of the series. Letting it be a prequel, letting things exist with you knowing them and the cast pretending they don’t was an excellent move. It’s got plenty of puzzle complexity, a lot of fun achievements to discover and some amazing extras where you can see the conception of the character designs and motifs.