While Metro Awakening's world-building and the depth of its characters will inspire players to want to check out the franchise's other installments, the game delivers another engaging VR adventure that takes advantage of immersive technology. It doesn't push the boundaries of the medium to the extent that the revolutionary Half-Life: Alyx or the criminal-invested Batman: Arkham Shadow, but Metro Awakening helps push the storytelling potential that immersive VR gaming can provide.
Batman: Arkham Shadow is VR gaming at its best.
While Death Note: Killer Within is a creative use of the property, the game doesn't use enough elements of the rich source material and has a good chance of leaving fans wanting more.
Goat Simulator: Remastered needs time in the stable.
Although it may only take around twenty hours for a long-time Sonic player to collect and experience everything Sonic X Shadow Generations has to offer, its level designs, gameplay mechanics, and incredible music reach a fantastic balance that makes replaying several stages over and over again a joy. Sonic X Shadow Generations is the best way to play one of the series' most enjoyable games that celebrates its past, and with the new Shadow content being a cut above the rest, it's a hopeful tease of where the franchise will go in the future.
Super Mario Party Jamboree has evolved the series.
Team Asobi has teased that tools will eventually be added to Astro Bot that should appeal to speedrunners. With that tool and a bit of post-launch content updates, Astro Bot's fun could last a lot longer than it does, and that would be a welcome inclusion for a game with a short run time. Still, any frustration with the game ultimately stems from wanting more of what Astro Bot provides, which at its core is a top-tier platformer with innovation, charm, and enjoyment to spare.
Destiny 2: The Final Shape is a poignant tribute to the franchise's journey since its debut in 2014. It breathes new life into the existing classes with the versatile Prismatic subclass, introduces fresh enemies and locations, and weaves a narrative that'll likely tug at the heartstrings of even the most casual players. With more seasonal and story content on the horizon, Destiny 2: The Final Shape propels the series to new heights, solidifying its position as one of the top PVE multiplayer shooters in the gaming world.
Fans of stylish and fast-paced adventure platforming games should give RKGK a try because, despite its shortcomings, it's a fun installment of its genre. While the main story can be completed in around 10 hours, finding all the collectibles, defeating time trials, and winning each challenge will take more time and practice to accomplish. RKGK may not be a revolutionary take on the genre, but it sticks the landing enough to be worth a look.
The ocean may seem like an immeasurable beast for new pirates, but once players spend enough time to get their bearings, the beast becomes less scary and more adventurous. Still, if players are not entertained by Sea of Thieves gameplay loop and cosmetic-only unlockables, Rare's pirate life may not be for them. For everyone else, including PS5 owners, there is more Sea of Thieves booty and timbers to shiver.
With all of the unique mechanics and a large variety of cast members, Gigantic: Rampage Edition proves it was worth bringing back. However, the cast and their incredible designs beg to be more fleshed out with a story mode that could have also introduced players to its characters and mechanics in a more interesting way than the highly recommended tutorials provide. Clash and Rush's modes indeed offer a unique MOBA experience, but more game modes and story would help Gigantic: Rampage Edition stand taller in a multiplayer market currently devoid of compelling characters with captivating storylines attached to them.
Tekken 8 is jam-packed with modes, story, and customizable options that should allow players of any skill level to have fun. Battling against veteran players in the multiple online modes will likely be a punishing experience for new players. Still, the latest installment offers the best tools in the franchise yet to master each of its 32 playable characters. Despite being more accessible than ever, Tekken 8 is challenging to master, and continues to make a case for itself as one of gaming's most complex and rewarding fighters.
Ironwood Studios' debut game accomplishes to be an immersive survival driving adventure. Its intense treks through mind-bending obstacles are balanced with humor and relaxing moments provided by crafting and upgrading useful tools and car components, along with Pacific Drive's catchy alternative rock soundtrack. It's an incredibly impressive debut game that should put the new studio on the map: "there's no peace of mind or place you'll see, like riding on Pacific Drive."
Because of the disappointing presentation and lack of engaging modes, Jujutsu Kaisen Curshed Clash is difficult to recommend to anyone other than the most invested JJK veterans. While the characters and ultimate attacks can look great with well-constructed animations, the gameplay fails to be addicting enough to entice players to keep coming back. The franchise is an incredible vehicle for a great fighting game, but unfortunately that potential has not been realized in Jujutsu Kaisen Curshed Clash.
A multiplayer game about killing the Justice League from the creators of the Batman Arkham trilogy fails to revolutionize an oversaturated genre.
Naruto Storm Connections introduces great upgrades to its addictive arena combat & a story that welcomes new players while tantalizing long-time fans.
Now that the entirety of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has been released, it's hard not to be disappointed in the anticipated title. For a franchise that once innovated and drove other shooters to be better, MW3 feels devoid of fresh ideas. Even the Warzone-like zombie mode feels like several good ideas smashed into a mode that doesn't click. Unfortunately, much of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 feels like a game stuck in the early 2000s, and players looking for something actually modern will need to look elsewhere.
Despite the game's pacing issues and ability to enrage its players, Ghostrunner 2 can be a challenging game to put down. The game's exciting synth-wave tracks and well-written supporting cast pair well with its visuals and outstanding boss battles to keep players interested. Ghostrunner 2 improves on the first game in many ways, but if the sequel were an anime, a lot of it would feel like filler material between its more engaging, epic boss battles.
Both the Quality and Performance Modes of Atlas Fallen sport incredible visuals and gameplay, especially with Performance Mode's 60fps. Atlas Fallen's photo mode was also a distracting highlight, especially when finding a rare glitch in the game and being able to have the main character express disappointment while pointing at said visual glitches to take the above screenshot. Developer Deck13 promises updates at launch will further improve the game, which did not suffer from any dramatic performance issues like other open-world games tend to release with. In its current state, Atlas Fallen is an excellent showcase of modern gaming that features some exciting mechanics that other action games could benefit from.
Remnant 2 is compelling as a single-player journey, but feels much more rewarding to play with others. To that end, the game does a solid job in making that a possibility, even for those without friends interested in the title at launch. Adventure Mode allows players to join a random quest with others, providing a quick and easy way to enjoy the cooperative multiplayer experience Remnant 2 excels at. With a large variety of playstyle customizations and a seemingly endless amount of levels on vibrant alien worlds to discover, Remnant 2 is a multiplayer shooter that'll keep players blasting enemies for a while and is well-worth a look in spite of its flaws.