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Valhalla Hills is a well built title easily capable of fulfilling a short term RTS fix. It's complex without being complicated and rewards players with dozens of unlockables for clever and calculated play. Valhalla Hills' only real drawback is the lack of a tutorial system that allows players to learn and take advantage of all the things it has to offer. RTS hardcores should find little difficulty with this potential caltrop, but moderate and casual players might have a very hard time.
Driveclub Bikes is a nice departure for the Driveclub franchise. This is an expansion that actually expands the game from a relatively competent title, in my opinion, to nearly a must own for racing fans. Others may feel they are adding a whipped cream dollop to their already delicious Driveclub pie. The gameplay mechanics and competitive A.I. make for the most interesting and challenging player vs. CPU racing that I've experienced in a long time. Driveclub Bikes is a highly recommended pickup, particularly for PlayStation Plus members.
Just what Telltale hopes to accomplish Minecraft: Story Mode remains in question as "The Last Place You Look" breaks story and characters for the sake of seeing every corner of the Minecraft universe.
Star Wars Battlefront nails bringing home the original trilogy in a new and interesting way, but fails to substantiate the splendor in a meaningful way. A fun nostalgia trip that might barely tide you over until the new film, but not much longer.
For the most part, The Old Hunters feels like a tight, good bit of content that fans of the original game will thoroughly enjoy. The Old Hunters ratchets up Bloodborne's difficulty quite a bit. But in doing so, the satisfaction of beating bosses only gets stronger. Found throughout the confines of the expansion are a host of new weapons and armor, all of which are welcome additions. The visual design is stronger than ever, as well. From Software has confirmed that there are no current plans for future Bloodborne expansions, meaning The Old Hunters is more than likely the bow on top of Miyazaki's 2015 project. If that is the case, it is a solid outing for one of the best games of 2015.
Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival retains the charm that the series is known for, but is uneventful and boring. Move out of this town.
Typoman is a brilliant proof of concept muddied by messy mechanics, unclear prompts and a lack of meaningful motivation. While the wordplay is superb, the focus is never on that strength as often as I wish it was.
Yo-Kai Watch is an endearing, charming title with some minor missteps, but it overcomes those with the pure joy of discovery and intrigue that can only come from a well-crafted collection-RPG, reminiscent of my youth spent behind a dim GameBoy light.
Nintendo's best competitive sports title is just as thrilling as ever, but feels a little too familiar and light on content.
StarCraft II Legacy of the Void is the culmination of years of improvements. Archon and co-op modes provide a stair step for new players and veterans alike to rejoin the multiplayer ranks, whereas the incredibly strong single player ties up the story arc nicely. While most sequels don't feel the freedom to innovate, Blizzard has done exactly that, making the venerable series feel fresh and new.
Telltale's Game of Thrones is at its best when it focuses on its own characters and isn't making a point to include ones from the books and show. The first season is one that is full of hard choices and a lot of sacrifice and feels very much in line with what fans have come to expect from Game of Thrones, but just how much all of this will matter has been hidden away for a second season.
Saint Seiya Soldier's Soul is a quaint fighting game that has its small playability value robbed by a unique fatal flaw in the restart option that drags the action and frustrates the player. While the game has some interesting features, it mostly just drags through monotonous gameplay and a confusing story. Too many features are hard to understand, and while unlocking features, items, and stages reminds me of old school fighting games, the problems of Saint Seiya Soldier's Soul makes the work to unlock them simply not worth the time and effort.
The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes can occasionally get tedious when playing alone, but the multiplayer is one of the greatest handheld co-op experiences around.
Stella Glow isn't reinventing the wheel here, but to its benefit it's not trying to. It's trying to be a fun, engaging, and relatively brief tactical J-RPG that signs the end of Imageepoch's tenor with a franchise they started. The story is anime-solid. The combat and social mini-games are enjoyable, and what few irritants the game does have are easily bested by any invested role-playing gamer. Stella Glow has a talent for keeping you engaged all the way through, which is a rare trait for the increasingly niche world of Japanese Role Playing games.
Lovely Weather We're Having has a solid foundation of eye-catching artwork and an ever-changing landscape based on your local weather. However, there are a few negatives that can't be overlooked, such as the rough audio, the lack of dialogue, and the small size of the world. Though I have to give it a low score based on what it is now, I do see potential in this game, and I'm hoping that there will be some updates after its release.
While not revolutionary in terms of storytelling, Bethesda is still the king of interactivity. Fallout 4 delivers on that interactivity in so many forms, it's mind boggling. Crafting, modification, and stronghold building trump a few nagging technical hitches. New enemy AI, coupled with an overhauled combat system, creates gunplay that feels better than ever before. Fallout 4 may be an iterative step forward for the series, but it is every bit what RPG fans know, love, and expect. Just play it on the PC, if you can.
Rise of the Tomb Raider continues Crystal Dynamic's standard of excellence, and creates an introspective and engrossing journey that combines a compelling narrative with fluid, exciting gameplay. Lara Croft is back, better than ever, and this series definitely proves to be the best Tomb Raider experience around.
Broforce is a fun game, but it's overbearing and obnoxious tone made it difficult to play for more than an hour or so at a time. If you're a fan of 2D action games, and have an appreciation for action flicks, definitely check it out. Seeing characters like Brobocop and Broblade in detailed pixel form wreak havoc on their enemies is a joy. There is just not much else that Broforce can offer you once you've cycled through the characters.
Mushroom 11 is an elegant and innovative game that keeps surprising me. Though its central mechanics are impressive on their own, the entire game has been skillfully designed. It's easy to brush aside lofty claims, but Untame has delivered the distinctive gaming experience they promised and then some.
Call of Duty: Black Ops III deserves your time – take a day off work to play. With two campaigns, world-class online combat and a deep and passionate step forward with Zombies (not to mention the fantastic Dead Ops Arcade 2), there is something here for everyone.