Ring Fit Adventure is no replacement for just going to the gym or taking up swimming or otherwise thoroughly committing to exercise. It is, at least, simple to set up, entertaining to play and therefore easy to keep using. It’s Nintendo being weird, which, for some of us, is a draw unto itself.
Many come to Tomb Raider games for adventure and escape, to visit beautiful places and solve befuddling puzzles. There's plenty of that in Shadow of the Tomb Raider, too. It all depends on how much, or how little, you want to dig and how much you want to play as Lara Croft.
Even when completion of the game unlocks more challenging modes, Star Allies mostly serves as a reminder that Kirby games seem to function as reflex for Nintendo as natural as breathing is for you or me. This one just checks the box.
Words I didn't expect to type in 2017: I really like the new Knack. So much for the running joke that this PlayStation 4 exclusive is a sequel that no one wanted. Good thing we got it.
Mr. Shifty stands victorious. The carnage was anything but cute, but it sure was satisfying.
Arkham VR might prove to be an amusing evolutionary dead-end, a one-time theme park attraction that used the best tech available to let us pretend, however awkwardly, to stand around as Batman. It may also represent a step toward a more deeply interactive virtual reality Batman game, one that will allow us to more literally step into the impressive Batman universe that Rocksteady has built. Either way, it’s a start at best. It’s not a destination.
I began ReCore having a marvelous time. By the end, I had begun to resent it. It wasn't that I felt rushed; I allowed myself extra days to play. It was just that the game is such a heart-sinker. It was created by people whose work I've greatly respected, but ReCore just doesn't feel ready for all of us to be playing it.
It's actually very good! A smartly-designed and surprisingly-strategic shooter best played in co-op.
The narrow focus of Near Death is appealing. Its designers succeed in presenting a refreshingly simple game about a straightforward struggle to live. They simply pit you against the cold, and they have erected an arduous and interesting interactive obstacle course you must overcome to survive.
You won’t struggle playing Planet Robobot. You’ll smile. The people who made it knew just what they were doing, and they’ve made one of the 3DS’ most delightful games.
The sense of scale that VR provides a game like this is remarkable. The comfort with which you can play this game is an example for other VR developers to follow. Yes, it is good and satisfying and even spectacular to play a traditional third-person action adventure in virtual reality.
Uncharted 4 may have problems at its edges, but its middle is phenomenal. It is a sufficiently wonderful finale for a studio that has made its own case that its next great step should be somewhere new.
Even after I found a way to wield its unwieldy controls, the game underneath those controls is a lukewarm retread. As a flagship Nintendo console release or even as a worthy sequel to a once-great franchise, Star Fox Zero just doesn't cut it.
The core gameplay of Star Fox Guard is nevertheless very good, very satisfying and very fun to play solo or with a person nearby shouting camera directions.
Despite how pedestrian some aspects of the game may be, I concluded Quantum Break feeling like something new had happened. Something special had happened that more than compensated for some of the flatness of the story and the mostly rote gunplay. A game simply never worked like this before, nor has a TV show. Because of that, what might have otherwise been ordinary feels extraordinary.
Primal is worth playing, but only once you're hungry for more and only if you're prepared to plumb its depths.
A meditative masterpiece of virtual architecture and puzzle design.
An unspectacular sidescroller that squanders its core idea.
The best bundle of games releases for an Xbox since The Orange Box. Some are all-time classics, Others are Grabbed By The Ghouies.
An entertaining if perosnality-light translation of Assassin's Creed from open-world 3D to linear 2D.