Solar Ash is one of those incredibly rare masterpieces that doesn’t get enough recognition for what it gives you; with an intensely rich story that unfolds as you progress and the unique world design, it just keeps giving you more reason to keep going. The fact that it’s a puzzle platformer actually adds to this game’s unique flare and helps keep things a bit more lively where other games go stale after a while.
The Bookwalker: Thief of Tales is a refreshing combination of different genres and viewpoints with an epic story to drive everything forward. Everything from the strange but rich narrative to the characters comes together to give us something close to a masterpiece. The only downside is the minor issue that appears when trying to interact with certain objects. However, even with that tiny flaw, The Bookwalker: Thief of Tales is a must-play because of its unique take on the genres it embodies.
Gray Dawn has great potential, but it fell flat in many aspects, ranging from overused horror tropes to undercutting loading times but loading textures as you play. Calling it rough around the edges is an understatement because it doesn’t seem like it got the work needed to shine, and it can come across as a little underbaked. If you can look past all the flaws, it has a somewhat interesting story, and the lore used gives the story a bit more depth, even if it is a little far-fetched.
God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla might have been an unexpected DLC but it tied off a lot of loose ends in the entire story as a whole. A lot of unanswered questions were answered, and the challenge to get to them is well worth every bit of effort needed to get to them. And while the shift to the Roguelike challenge was odd, it’s a great change of pace that fits the game brilliantly. However, there is the small matter of certain secret end-game content that needs to be discovered for the DLC to make sense, which might confuse the people who didn’t dig deeper after taking down Odin.
Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is a little rough around the edges but it’s also the best rendition of the Warhammer universe brought to gamers. It’s perfect for those who are new to Warhammer and DND veterans who want a rich story to experience. Sadly, the ship battles are a drag, but everything else, from the brilliant voice acting to the overall gameplay, more than makes up for that little blemish on the experience of a game.
Super Mario RPG is one of the few remakes that can practically speak for itself; it’ll get hold of you and somehow keep you going for the sake of finding the next part of the story. It’s a well-done remake in just about every sense, from the environments to the different enemies, while maintaining that infamous Mario silliness through it all. The only downside is that there will definitely be a lot of reasons to do it, and voice acting would’ve made this release a star in its own sense.
Persona 5 Tactica is a great spinoff from a brilliant long-standing series, the switch from RPG to Turn-Based Strategy is a nice touch and makes it a lot more approachable for others while maintaining the same story quality we all know and love. The best part is that you don’t have to play the other games to get into Persona 5 Tactica, so if you’re a fan of wild and whacky chaos, this is a must-play for you.
Remnant 2 - The Awakened King might be a one-shot adventure, but it’s completely worth playing if you’re after a bit more mystery and some new lore as to the worlds in Remnant 2. The only drawback is the lack of enemy variety and special sound, but these can still be overlooked, and you’ll just need to be careful with where you walk, or you might find yourself on the unforgiving end of a few nasty ranged attacks.
Dungeons 4 looks set to be the biggest sequel to an already great series of releases while maintaining the same level of over-the-top quality and brilliant story. Though it’s also one the most of the most fleshed-out games out there with so much to keep you sucked in, whether you’re looking for a good story or just some strategy with a challenge, you’ll likely get exactly what you’re after.
ENDLESS Dungeonn is one of those very rare roguelites that bring so much to the table and just can’t help but bury itself into your brain with the next challenge that needs to be faced off against. With a rich story and a massive lore base to hunt down, you might find yourself sharpening your skills and strategies just to reach the end and see how it all goes down. However, if that’s not your cup of tea, the challenge itself is still more than enough to appeal to suck in just about anybody.
The Invincible is far from just a story-driven game, it’ll tell you a story but allow you to make the hard decisions and you’ll get the story you need. With a good majority of the plot and details extracted from a novel, it’s refreshing to see just how perfectly executed this was. It’ll leave you wanting more as you keep uncovering Yasna’s story. This is the type of game that gives you a rich story and unholy amounts of detail in one space-fueled shot. It’s a masterpiece that everybody needs to experience, not just for its beauty but also for what it is as a whole.
Alan Wake 2 might have its flaws, but it’s definitely the sequel we needed after what happened in the first game. Between the visuals and sound engineering, you’ll be in for quite a treat, and you might end up losing hours in pursuit of seeing what happens next in the story. Granted, the story is great too, even if a bit confusing at times, but that’s part of Alan Wake’s plot. This is definitely a game that can appeal to horror and mystery fans alike.
Jusant might start off as a fun climbing game that challenges you to climb a massive mountain, but it’ll end up turning into a journey. Even though Jusant doesn’t have any NPCs, there’s still a rich story to discover in the form of letters from the previous people who lived there. All in all, Jusant might give players with a fear of heights a nightmare or two, but it’s easy enough to look past for a game that’ll leave a lasting impact and maybe even a few fond memories.
RIPOUT lures you in with a great story and concept right from the start, but the execution needs some work. The Pet Gun is a brilliant change to the typical action genre, and it adds a lot more quality; with a little more polish and extra detail, it has the potential to become a game that can go quite far. If you can look past some of the flaws, there’s definitely a mountain of fun to be had and some chaos to cause.
Lords of the Fallen is a brilliant Souls-like and a great successor to the previous attempt, even though it has a few drawbacks. Between the story and the visuals, you’ll find yourself losing hours (or even days) just exploring the worlds of Axium and Umbral, but you might also end up putting the game aside due to how unforgiving it can be. All the game really needs is just a bit of cleanup on resolution scaling and some minor quality-of-life fixes for it to really shine.
Counter-Strike 2 might have gotten the Overwatch treatment with a rebrand, but there are a few differences to be spotted. With a bigger selection of maps and the extra game modes, things might actually start looking up for this release. However, the lack of moderation and optimization might also be what puts the final nails in this game’s coffin.
Knight Vs Giant: The Broken Excalibur has quite a few flaws and needs some serious polish to be classified as a good Roguelike. The biggest flaw at hand is the seemingly endless grind for almost no reward in the early stages and the game’s desperate need for some quality-of-life fixes, all this aside, you’ll be treated to a strange and intriguing story that will have you coming back for more. Sadly, the game needs more polish to make it worthwhile to keep coming back to the story just for the sake of seeing what happens to Camelot in the end.
Mortal Kombat 1 has seen vast improvements and brings a lot of new features to the table, even though some aren’t entirely necessary. The Story Mode alone brings a whole new beginning for Mortal Kombat as a whole and opens up endless new possibilities for the franchise to grow and expand upon. While there are a few minor drawbacks, like the complexity of Kameos and the strange turn brought in with Invasions, the biggest flop is how online play is handled. Though Story Mode and the visual side of Mortal Kombat 1 more than make up for a good majority of the flaws.
Avatar: The Last Airbender - Quest For Balance is, unfortunately, lacking in some aspects and overdone in others. The story is mostly based on the original, and adding in extra events is a nice touch, but simply narrating it instead of showing it didn’t help the low-quality storytelling at all. The combat system needs a lot more polish, and the lack of camera controls that effectively force it to be more like a side-scroller instead makes it difficult to enjoy the game for what it is.
SUPER BOMBERMAN R 2 is a great reboot of a classic game we all know and love. With the same level of great storytelling and chaos, you’ll be thrown head-first into nostalgia while getting to play an old classic on modern terms. When you’re tired of Story Mode, there’s always some good and friendly fun with friends or through matchmaking if you want an interesting challenge as well.