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Bandai Namco, you beautiful, beautiful people, you did it. You nailed Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, creating one of the most compelling war games that I have played through. This is coming from somebody who wasn’t a big fan of the last one either. The narrative is engaging and compelling, even when playing out with six different players in the middle of explosions and absolute chaos. And that gameplay? Engaging, whether you have been playing these games your entire life or are looking to try one for the first time. This is a big, bold Mission Accomplished.
I’m not really sure what I was expecting or hoping for in Lawn Mowing Simulator 2, if I am being honest. Was I looking for something to take my mind off of life? If so, yeah, the game works for that. Jump in, power up my mower, and trim some grass to 3.50″. It is an easy sim to jump into, with a lot to learn that doesn’t feel punishing in the long run. If you are not familiar with the subject of the game, you can pick this up, get in, and get started without much to hold you back. Some tasks can be frustrating and time-consuming, so buckle in. I do think the best aspects of the experience outweigh anything else, though, so this is a business worth building.
Not every sequel needs to reinvent the wheel. It is just as important when a game maintains its identity while bringing a couple of new things to the table. Small but meaningful changes can go a long way. Clueless that there would ever be a sequel, what a joy it is to live in a world where a game like Toem 2 exists. Taking photographs, making friends, admiring everything life has to offer. It doesn’t get better than that, and developer Something We Made knows it.
Dynasty Warriors 3: Complete Edition Remastered (that really is a mouthful of a title) is the best version of a remaster. It barely needed the update, but the improved graphics and framerate are welcome touches. Even without those, though, I’m on board; this is one of the best Dynasty Warriors experiences out there. This is the one that helps you understand how such a simple premise can demand one more stage, over and over again, until you look at the clock and you realize it’s been three days. Yeah, it’s seriously that freaking good.
When Silent Hill: Townfall was being showcased, my biggest fear was that it might be a passive horror game where the player has no autonomy to defend themselves. After playing it, I have done almost a 180 on that. I loved the atmospheric horror moments, sneaking and avoiding, attempting to distract them, and moving around them. The combat could have bolstered this and made you feel that stagnation in an unchanging experience, but it was almost entirely underwhelming. Any moment where it became clear I would need to was met with a long, exasperated sigh. Why that hurt is that the game built such an inviting world of horror that I was ready to embrace wholeheartedly.
Folktales vividly tell stories that are parallel to our world to remind us of something we may have lost along the way. Part farm-sim, part magical school, all an ode to nature, Songs of Glimmerwick is a remarkable achievement because from the very first moment that you play, you feel its kindness reaching out. Through a lush art style, stellar voice work, and its rustic soundtrack, it is a great example of why magic is all around us. We just need to know where to look.
Being intrigued by a game’s art style is a valid argument to try it. Perhaps that is one of the reasons players clamor for demos. Because you will never know how a game feels until you actually get to play it. I do not regret playing Kernel Hearts. Its dazzling anime cutscenes and eye-catching art style are enough to take it for a ride, even if a short one. But its floaty combat and lack of meaningful rewards on each run might deter players from committing in the long term.
It was so rewarding to shop for fun fabrics and see my vision come together on the mannequin. My only real complaint is that it would be nice to see your dresses on the characters, but overall this is a small issue that the photo mode and dress log mostly make up for.
Marvel’s Wolverine had these moments that I absolutely loved, and these others that frustrated the hell out of me. There are design choices in here; I would point straight at the QTEs when saying this, which felt pointless. The game evokes a period in gaming that I at least fondly remember, but for a modern game, it just doesn’t completely work. Throughout my entire playthrough, I kept thinking of another Insomniac game, Sunset Overdrive. I love that game. Is it perfect? No. Is it even them at their best? No? What it is, though, is Insomniac’s unique brand of crazy. There is nothing genuinely special or memorable here. There are moments where the game justifies itself, but even then, it lacks that spark you expect, and it’s a shame.
Nighthawks has some pretty noticeable stumbles. The story hits dead ends way too often and can often feel like you are solving another case to figure out how to move on to the next portion. Similarly, progressing states is a mystery unto itself that can take a pretty hefty amount of time to start pushing forward. Where the game succeeds, it does so with enough force to propel past its faults. The RPG, while not necessarily deep, is very rewarding, and the open-ended structure leaves loads of room to explore. The narrative is phenomenal, with an engaging cast of characters that never fails to delight. More than anything else, though, this is the closest to a creature of the night I have truly felt in a long time, living out my VTM and True Blood dreams, and that is really saying something.
I was never the same after that summer. Gaining new friends that I frequented for years to come, although I tried to resist the change future me is grateful that things turned out the way they did. Likewise, once Foxy leaves her electronics and decides to look up at the world above, she really starts to live. To appreciate the world in new ways, to recognize that these fleeting moments will become cherished memories, to feel that life is worth living. Woodo appreciates profound storytelling as much as its adorable art style. So much for a simple puzzle game.
Do you want me as the driver on the next train you get on? No, you most certainly do not! Am I a better driver than I was when I started Train Sim World 7? Yes, but in a formal debate you would have a hard time grounding that claim. None of that matters, though. Turn the knob to forward, put the brake in release, crank the throttle for speed, then sit back and watch the world that drifts by your window, beautiful, majestic, and calming. I’m still not fully sure how many issues I encountered were technical or me just not playing very well, but I put up with them because it was worth it. For that feeling of freedom you are afforded, I would do anything.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword upgrades the franchise from the previous era, making for a much more technically challenging game. Instead of fighting fixed camera angles, you are fighting fast enemies with move sets that require precision to overcome. This could easily feel like anything or everything else on the market, but instead, thanks to a clever skill tree of robust abilities, you get a vast amount of tools that require timing to master. It is enough that you can choose which ones to emphasize practicing if others aren’t working out the way you need them to. This elevates the title’s combat from simple hack-and-slash to something creative and enjoyable.
Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault is more of the same, on a base level, but that’s not a bad thing. The cycle of dungeons and sales, with minor reflection on capitalism, worked then and continues to work well. The improvements to this, as evidenced by the jump from the Pixelsprite of the first game to the 3D animation, also feel meaningful. A good early access campaign can mean all the difference for a roguelike as it grows with its audience, and clearly the time was not squandered. If you want a game all about making money, this is well worth your money.
The painful part is I really wanted to love The Blood of Dawnwalker, not have this lukewarm emotion towards it. The best aspects of the game are so unique compared to everything else out there and, with enough commitment, are very fun to play. It’s the other side of that coin that muddies the water. That great combat has to contend with technical hiccups, and those are the only things where maybe I would feel differently. Progression is the best example of how great Ideas just keep having minor directional choices hold them back profusely. There is a series here; developer Rebel Wolves has a great concept here that works when it works but doesn’t when it doesn’t.
The question about what makes an indie game special is one often brought up by developers and players alike. In Cat Me If You Can’s case, it is simple. It captures a relaxing atmosphere for observant explorers to photograph cats and occasionally interact with the environment. Cue the impossibly slick soundtrack that invites you to not only look at every corner with ease but also to take it easy while doing so, and you have a formula that cat lovers everywhere will rejoice in.
Continuing the resurgence of modern games capturing that retro feel, Isle of Reveries knows what it wants to be and achieves it. From the stellar pixel art style to the sound effects and music straight up from the 90s, it feels right at home with the contemporaries it so earnestly wants to be a part of. Clever puzzle mechanics from its copy ability and extensive dungeons round up one experience that, thanks to its humorous delivery, lightheartedly reminds one of a classic time with care.
Tell you what, I loved my time in Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy, even when I was running for my life from instakill. This is everything an adventure should be; it pays homage to games I grew up on to craft an experience that felt shiny and new. More than any of that, it opens up the universe for more experiences than just keeping rats at bay and throwing rocks at people’s heads.
I wanted so badly to enjoy Starsand Island. I have been waiting for this release for a while. It’s just hard to recommend the game in the state it is in now. I feel worse, given it’s a small team taking big swings. Potentially you will have a different experience; clearly, people have progressed past where my game came to an end. Even before that, though, Starsand Island was underbaked and not ready for primetime in the slightest.
I often hear that Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a good game, but it isn’t Nioh. I understand that sentiment and have even said it. As a Kasurigami main, one of the only weapons that freaking dropped between the two, I feel like I never really gave it the chance. There are some things, sure, that I feel don’t rise to the gold standards Team Ninja has set for themselves; upon reflection, though, they were so much closer than I remember. The game is fun, and you can genuinely get lost in it. Sure, I can list off some points that are lacking, but that combat? Chef’s kiss. Some of the absolute best, and that’s enough, is a reason to play.