Crossroads Inn might not be the first medieval sim (that honor probably goes to 2011’s The Sims Medieval) and there are quite a few castle builders out there as well, but as a narrowly focused genre blend of builder and sim, Crossroads Inn stakes out some specific territory.
There’s something to be said for a stripped down to basics game experience, without too many complications or intricacies that get in the way of the fun. Pistol Whip is entertaining and another of the growing list of successful arguments for VR as a near-staple for gamers.
At a near-premium price of $40, Last Labyrinth suggests a polished product, crafted by experienced designers and generous of content. In truth, almost nothing about Last Labyrinth is fun or rewarding.
The Sims 4: Discover University is definitely weighted towards the real-world experiences and lessons of college life and in addition to being highly entertaining, might just possibly have some educational value of its own.
Although it doesn’t include all the PC game’s extra content, Civ VI comes to the PS4 and Xbox with both the Rise and Fall and Gathering Storm expansions and the latter in particular is a literal game changer. I can certainly imagine using Civ VI as an engaging educational tool to consider the many competing forces around climate change.
Games are often escapist entertainment, but not everyone enjoys games that are full of tension, conflict or violence - at least all of the time. Lost Ember is a different form of escapism, an emotional and soothing journey into the natural world and its nonhuman inhabitants.
In the case of Everreach: Project Eden, some mechanical issues with AI or balance can be patched, which other problems are more in the realm of aesthetics and direction and are probably doomed to never go away.
Patient gamers waiting for a new installment of MechWarrior will be pleased to find a graphically modern version of a classic franchise, but also a game that struggles to compete with the story, pacing and characters of recent action games that have learned to balance complexity and momentum with a little more panache.
I did not play the original release, so I can’t compare this new version to the old or verify its improvements or the effectiveness of its multiple ending variants, but if the game’s frequent load times have been improved, they must have been really egregious before. In the end, although The Signifier Director’s Cut has a solid intellectual conceit and an interesting story to tell, I’m just not convinced that a point-and-click puzzle game is the ideal medium for telling it. Despite its improvements, it’s still rough around the edges in lots of little ways. Still, the new release of the game manages to drop more than a few thought bombs for later contemplation, so while The Signifier Director’s Cut lacks in polish and execution, it is worth checking out for fans of the point-and-click genre and brainy games in general.
With its close-cousin-to-Legos look, smallish levels, and fast load times on current consoles, Dungeon and Gravestone has some addictive curb appeal but ultimately fails to deliver anything really new to a very crowded genre. There is depth to be sure, both in the options for character progression, stuff to find and fight, and the dozens of levels of the dungeons and hidden areas. The buzzkill for me was not the expected and familiar roguelike loop, but the frustrating movement mechanics, the necessity of replaying the uninspired, bare-bones early levels over and over, and the slow progress towards building a reasonably powerful character. Dungeon and Gravestone will scratch an itch for the devotees of the genre but I suspect those without a lot of patience will bounce off pretty quickly.
Hood: Outlaws and Legends is committed to a very specific multiplayer model that may or may not have legs. The game feels unbalanced, populated by a large number of surprisingly high-level players wreaking havoc on newbies, and squads interested in subverting the flow of gameplay. Some of these issues will get ironed out in time with tweaks to balance and matchmaking but what remains is still a fairly limited experience even under ideal circumstances.
Wrath of the Druids is a substantial, mechanically strong and visually impressive expansion for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and anyone who appreciated the main game will absolutely enjoy Eivor’s journey to the Emerald Isle. Wrath of the Druids does not make any fundamental changes to Valhalla’s game play but it’s easy to become invested in the new story, interesting characters and beautiful environments, and can be enjoyed by a player at any level.
Although 2019 didn’t quite peg the games-quality meter as much as the prior year, it did have its share of standout titles, Metro: Exodus included. The game sold enough to spawn some excellent DLC as well. For anyone who missed Metro: Exodus in its original release and can scale the graphics card barrier to entry, the Enhanced Edition is definitely a must-buy. Thankfully players without the requisite gear can still enjoy the game’s other, less major, improvements and fixes too.
With its unique, effective art design and plethora of satisfying puzzles, Retro Machina has many of the ingredients of a memorable and rewarding game. It’s unfortunate that combat and some key control mechanics discolor what could be a vibrant experience. Thematically, Retro Machina doesn’t cover new ground but the way it approaches puzzles and story makes sense and feels consistent with the world it has created. As an early game from a new studio, Retro Machina is an auspicious, if flawed, debut.
In the end, I appreciated that The Wild at Heart leans into being an actual game rather than simply a thinly disguised exploration of childhood trauma. Together with inviting art direction that suggests an animated storybook and a story that supports layers of meaning, The Wild at Heart was a pleasant discovery. The game’s combat and puzzles aren’t entirely consistent or satisfying, and moment to moment the experience can feel a little aimless, but fans of accessible puzzle and action games with heart and some emotional depth should check it out.
The devoted and opinionated Warhammer acolytes will no doubt weigh in on how faithfully Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground represents the tabletop experience and lore, both of which have expanded and diverged from the source with the blessings of Games Workshop. From the viewpoint of a casual but interested fan, Storm Ground is a success both as an enjoyable turn-based strategy rogue-lite game and as yet another product in the vast and varied Warhammer universe. Although it exists primarily as a training ground for multiplayer, the single-player campaign is worth playing, though it would have been even better with a true dramatic arc instead of the “infinitely replayable” roguelike runs. The three factions are a great place to start and whet the appetite for expansions and additional content.
So often developers create a game using the kitchen-sink approach and it isn’t always clear how or why disparate mechanics deserve to play together. In the case of Tainted Grail: Conquest, deckbuilding, roguelike progression, and action RPG-type exploration feel compatible with each other as well as the dark fantasy setting and story. Less successful are the punishing, protracted battles that take too long and lack variety over multiple runs. With some additional balancing, classes, card types, and adjustment to pacing, Tainted Grail’s fundamentally solid concepts could shine through the darkness a little better.
If you’re a Dungeons and Dragons enthusiast that demands slavish adherence to licensed and familiar content, then Solasta: Crown of the Magister may disappoint you. If, on the other hand, your concept of D&D is more defined by the mechanics of character and party creation and the flow of exploration and combat defined by rolls of the dice, then Solasta will deliver a very authentic experience. It often doesn’t look pretty and it still has a few ugly bugs to iron out, but the inclusion of an excellent level creator and a superlative UI put Solasta: Crown of the Magister in the must-play column for both fans of the Fifth Edition rules and CRPGs in general.
Like so much of the Warhammer 40K universe, Necromunda is a richly imagined world filled with the potential for conflict and storytelling. Using it as the setting for an action-filled shooter makes total sense. Although its mechanics are essentially a greatest-hits collection of ideas from other shooters, Necromunda: Hired Gun is a competent introduction to this particular slice of the Warhammer 40K-verse.
For many, Conan Exiles’ flaws and quirks are what makes the game fun, and without a doubt, Isle of Siptah gives new and returning players many hours of quality content. The new areas, armor, weapons, monsters and quests are engaging for players past the beginning stages, and although there are no significant changes in the game’s mechanics, getting started on the Isle’s new areas is still fun. For better or worse (mostly the former), Isle of Siptah is a lot more Conan Exiles.