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State of Mind is so obsessed with its story that it forgets what medium it's in. While a strong storyline and adept world-building can't be denied, the game can't escape its undercooked mechanics and puzzles.
Madden NFL 19 is a fantastic entry into the long-running series. The new Player Movement System and air collision system lead to far more fluent gameplay and animation while MUT comes in better than ever. The MUT challenges are enjoyable and offer a great way to start building your team and a new emphasis on training and chemistry allows for more strategy. New or returning, Madden NFL 19 is a must buy for football fans.
We Happy Few is an ambitious open-world survival game that does not benefit from being one. Tedious exploration courtesy of poorly-designed environments and underdeveloped survival mechanics detract from an otherwise strong main adventure. Charming presentation, colorful writing, and powerful environmental storytelling are highlights that are unfortunately eclipsed by a shallow open world.
At its heart, Megaton Rainfall is a solid superhero score-chaser that understands the freedom of flight, and empowers the player with a myriad of interesting abilities. Random difficulty spikes and a painfully generic design do hold this game back from being the best that the genre has to offer, though. On top of that, Megaton Rainfall, specifically on Switch, falls victim to a series of unacceptable technical issues which both mitigate Megaton Rainfall's strengths, and aggravate its weaknesses. In its current state, it is impossible for me to recommend this game.
Cosmic Star Heroine is an accessible RPG that fits very well with the Switch's lineup. While some issues like bugs and an underwhelming story hold it back from being an RPG classic, the experience is propelled by its innovative and creative combat system and eclectic cast of characters.
Octopath Traveler is an all around enjoyable, nostalgic romp with some nice modern touches. While enjoyment of the storytelling will likely vary from character to character and from player to player, this retro-modern title is filled with sidequests, great music, slightly-hidden team banter, and a gorgeous new approach to pixel art, and is a must-play for any lover of old school JRPGs.
Dead Cells is an amazing rogue-like 2D action platformer. Fast, fluid combat is enjoyable, especially with the different weapons and tools you can find.
Train Sim World is a relaxing game where you operate a variety of trains as you travel to specified destinations. There is a nice selection of trains, helpful tutorials, and 17 scenarios to play through. The game isn't the most exciting experience, and sometimes leans towards monotonous and boring. If you love simulation games and trains, this might be right up your alley.
Despite some gripes about the translation from PC to console, The Banner Saga 3 does an admirable job wrapping up a grim tale of separation and loss. And it does that with challenging and fun tactical battles as well as fascinating player choice throughout.
Titan Quest is an entertaining port that brings back a blast from the past. The gameplay is smooth, the controls are precise, and the skills are pretty cool as well. The texture loading issues and freezes that occasionally happen can be annoying, but they aren't game-breaking. Titan Quest can also be enjoyed solo or with friends.
MOTHERGUNSHIP is a great FPS with some laugh out loud dialogue and a deeply entertaining gun crafting mechanic. While the roguelike elements bring the game down, it's still a delightful little game to fire up during the AAA summer drought.
Priced at $15.99, but with only about 2 hours of single player gameplay (minus any score attack stuff you might tackle in the arcade mode), Naked Sun is a good, albeit short, way to ease new VR gamers into the medium.
The Banner Saga 2 is a stunningly animated game that sets a new standard for both presentation and narrative outside of the AAA sphere. The game does stumble with a poorly designed combat UI, and a claustrophobic battle system that doesn't offer much breathing room for different strategies. While monotonous, combat is serviceable, and doesn't greatly detract from what is otherwise a defining narrative tale.
Chicken Assassin: Reloaded has good intentions with its clicker-style gameplay, and has a cheesy art style and presentation. However, a few performance issues mixed with UI problems and some monotonous grind mechanics make for a mixed experience that entertains as much as it frustrates.
Hand of Fate 2 has stellar writing, fun deck building, and interesting stories. What it doesn't have, however, is good combat. While I have grown to find the combat manageable, it should be fun and exciting. It stands as an odd blemish that has been carried over from the original while everything else as been prettied up. Still, I recommend giving Hand of Fate 2 a chance, especially if you never played the original. Even with the lackluster combat there is plenty to enjoy here.
Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 isn't just a collection of faithful ports on new hardware, it's a mix of some of the best Mega Man games with plenty of love and goodies. The addition of medals is a great way to encourage players to fully explore every title, and X Challenge is fun, if not disorganized at times. For players new to the Mega Man X series, this is where to begin.
Legacy Collection 2 is a roller coaster of emotions. Only about one and a half of the games in the box are actually good, but it will also complete the X series and fulfill hardcore fans. If you don't care about any of that, save the $20 and just get the first collection. Or, buy collection 2 and laugh at X7 with your friends.
Semblance lets you deform your platforms to solve puzzles how you want, but it limits your tools so severely that the promise of that idea is wasted on mediocre puzzles. It has a neat look, but like its core mechanic, it wears thin even before you get to the end of your two hour trip through the game.
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is fundamentally strong with a solid core idea and great level design, but doesn't succeed beyond that. A more cohesive atmosphere, extra camera options, and deliberate mechanical progression could've made the experience far more satisfying. The conversion to the Switch brings along its own problems as well, making it hard to call this version definitive. As it stands, the game is a fun but forgettable adventure.
20XX isn't just a good Mega Man X clone, it's an insanely fun and addictive roguelike with plenty of personality and possibilities. Each run is different from the last, and each death feels fair and justified. I'm confident that 20XX will only become better over time and be a shining example of how to do platformer-based roguelikes.