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Curse of the Dead Gods is fantastic. The gameplay, while incredibly challenging, is still fun and immensely rewarding. It's so satisfying to finally complete a dungeon after spending hours grinding there. It's a roguelite in nearly the best sense of the word, with the only downside being that there's no established story; no tangible endgame.
The Blizzard Arcade Collection is a great little compilation of some lesser known Blizzard games. The additional features such as rewind and save states, when available at least, are delightful improvements, and the definitive editions work amazingly well. I'm also impressed with such a great behind the scenes section with a lot of interesting content. But most of this smorgasbord is par for the course, and I expect a little more out of Blizzard. It falls under the competent category, rather than revolutionary.
Atelier Ryza 2 is a good looking and highly entertaining game once you get past its snail paced narrative and complicated mechanics.
Capcom Arcade Stadium is the best way to play a few of Capcom's arcade classics. It's clear a lot of love went into making sure these games were emulated perfectly and to recreate the atmosphere of a bustling arcade. Whatever you want to play here, you can't go wrong.
Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is a work of art you absolutely must play. It's heartfelt and personal, with tons of fun puzzles to solve and locations to explore.
Sword of the Necromancer manages to bring something new to the flooded rogue-like genre while providing a heartwarming story. It has a multitude of options to allow players to tailor the game to their liking. It's breadth of mechanics allow for tons of experimentation that will keep you coming back until you finally get the true ending.
Mutropolis is a fun game held back by unforgiving speed bumps. I am enthralled by the beautiful art style, and the tone the game sets in the narrative leaves you having a good time. But it's hard to enjoy what you're doing if you can't move forward, and I too often found myself at a stop sign.
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury contains two excellent Mario games, but is unfortunately held back by frustrating controls, especially in multiplayer, and a lot of waiting in Bowser's Fury when going for 100%. If you can get past that though, you're in for some of the best 3D platforming Mario has to offer.
Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis has beautiful visuals that depict the ancient world of Atlantis in a semi-realistic representation of a harbor, temple, outdoor marketplace, etc. The immersive quality of VR draws in the player as they try to solve puzzles through the campaign. While there are some flaws and definitely the developers could do more to enhance the user experience, I still recommend Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis as a unique historically-based puzzle game.
A visceral assault on the senses, Little Nightmares II drowns you in its thick, moody atmosphere and renders you helpless against the Pale City's many horrors. It is a meticulously crafted, devilishly clever puzzle-adventure that weaponizes every tool the medium has to offer to terrify you. While it retains many of the flaws that hurt its predecessor, its length, polish, and ambition propel it to the upper echelon of horror games.
Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption is fantastic. It's a highly immersive experience with great writing that will have you fall in love with some characters and hate others, while also giving you the opportunity to live out your rogue fantasies. Every minute is a genuinely fun DnD-esque experience, even when having to study for a test or have the protagonist complete tasks like learning how to lockpick or fight. A definite must-have for any isometric RPG fans.
Persona 5 Strikers is a fantastic sequel to one of the best JRPGs of all time. It's less of a Warriors game and more of an action RPG with fun, fluid combat, great characters, and an excellent story and soundtrack.
The Nioh Collection does come at a premium asking price, but for your $69.99 you'll pick up a pair of games with easily over 150 hours of gameplay, with brand new visual modes to make it look its very best. Granted, this is a Team Ninja game so you can expect that it will punish you for each and every inch of ground you gain, but when you do succeed it makes it all the more sweet.
Slick, intuitive stealth gameplay serves as Disjunction's backbone, though the supporting systems and level design could do more to lighten its burden.
While Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood may contain interesting ideas, like being able to shift forms in an instant, its gameplay and story are too generic and boring to be worthwhile.
A love letter to the NES era of platformers, Cyber Shadow scratches the retro itch just right. With some amazing gameplay elements and a killer presentation, this is an adventure you need in your life right now.
With only a few technical hiccups, Immortals Fenyx Rising: A New God represents a dozen hours of vault-based challenges that will put your platforming and logic skills to the test. If you want more Fenyx Rising but harder, then this expansion is a must-have.
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands is a return to greatness for the franchise. The content is both accessible and fun for all types of players, and the story actually makes you feel like everything you're doing is helping to save the Shadowlands. Torghast is one of the best features ever added and makes each experience unique and fun. While there are some issues which can slow down the time it takes to get everything you want, the journey there is still enjoyable.
With creepy puzzle moments throughout, The Medium pulls off a dual-reality puzzler with precision. The game looks magnificent, with impressive lighting and shadows courtesy of RTX, though the Xbox Series X version suffers from occasional stutters and hitches, as well as level of detail pops. More classic dread than jump scares, it delivers on its promise of horror served two ways, making it unique and a must-have for horror fans, even if it's a little lighter fare.
Hitman 3 is the ultimate Hitman experience, period. The game runs almost improbably crisp, and each location is a ton of fun to explore. Replayability is a must, but not just because of the brevity of the campaign, but because there is so much to do in each one. Adding the missions of yesteryear appends even more to the package, along with the ability to be the assassin in VR or take it on the go with Stadia or Switch. I could try and nitpick it for what it doesn't do or where it comes up short (of which there's almost nothing), but when it comes to being an early contender for Game Of The Year, Hitman 3 hits its target dead center.